A wealthy man, a patron of the arts, called three artists to his side and gave each of them a simple commission: “I want you to paint a picture titled ‘Rest.’” Away went the three men, each to his own studio to ponder the assignment, to rough up some initial sketches, to plan and paint his finest work.
Months later the three returned to display their paintings. The first unveiled a landscape, a placid pool vividly reflecting the mountains that rose up behind it. The second unveiled an image of a farmer lying in the shadow of a great haystack, enjoying a well-earned break from hard labor. The third unveiled a scene of frenzy and fury, a great torrent passing over a waterfall and plunging to the ground far beneath. But leaning over the top of the cliff was a branch and on that branch a nest and in that nest a bird who was brooding over her chicks, attending to their every need. And this, the patron saw with delight, was the truest portrayal of rest.
The gospel of Jesus Christ promises peace and rest to those who embrace it. “Come to me, all who labor
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