When was the last time you truly rested?
In a world that glorifies hustle—even in Christian circles—rest often feels like a luxury we can’t afford. But what if stepping away is exactly what your soul (and your dream) needs?
IF YOU’VE EVER struggled to REST FROM BUSYNESS, THIS IS THE EPISODE FOR YOU!
In this episode, guest Eryn Lynum returns to talk about what Sabbath rest has meant for her family, her dream, and her spiritual life. She shares insights from her latest book, The Nature of Rest, to remind us that choosing rest isn’t laziness—it’s obedience. This is your invitation to stop striving and start trusting the God who never sleeps.
Whether you’re deep in dream-chasing mode or still discerning what God is calling you to, this conversation will help you reevaluate your pace, your priorities, and the peace that’s possible when you consistently practice rest in God’s presence.
In this episode, you’ll learn:
🌿 The comforting truth about the impact of rest on creativity and productivity
🕊️ Strategies for weaving rhythms of rest into daily life and work
⏸️ The art of taking intentional breaks that renew your soul and clarify your focus
You were never meant to carry your God-shaped dream alone—or run after it without rest. Your value and worth don’t come from your output or your results, and your dream isn’t dependent on constant activity.
When we talk about Sabbath, it isn’t just about slowing down; it’s about remembering who’s in charge and receiving the grace to keep going.
May this episode be a gentle invitation to release your striving, embrace your limits, and let God lead—one restful, purposeful step at a time.
Throughout this month we are exploring the theme of maintaining our focus on Christ amidst distractions and setbacks, so press play and let’s get started!
CONNECT WITH MERRITT:
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CONNECT WITH ERYN:
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MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:
Eryn Lynum’s books:
The Nature of Rest: What the Bible and Creation Teach Us About Sabbath Living by Eryn Lynum (May 13, 2025)
Rooted in Wonder: Nurturing Your Family's Faith Through God's Creation by Eryn Lynum
936 Pennies: Discovering the Joy of Intentional Parenting by Eryn Lynum
The Nat Theo Podcast: Nature Lessons Rooted in the Bible by Eryn Lynum
How to Battle Imposter Syndrome
Trying harder to believe you’re enough will never be the solution to imposter syndrome. Freedom begins when you cease striving and start believing in God’s truth of who He says you are.
If you want to find freedom from imposter syndrome, join the waitlist for Dreamers Unleashed! Doors open in May 2025!
Scripture:
Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
~ Matthew 11:28 (ESV)
Do you not know? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom.
~ Isaiah 40:28 (NIV)
Six days you shall gather it, but on the seventh day, which is a Sabbath, there will be none.
~ Exodus 16:26 (ESV)
And he said, “My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.” And he said to him, “If your presence will not go with me, do not bring us up from here. For how shall it be known that I have found favor in your sight, I and your people? Is it not in your going with us, so that we are distinct, I and your people,
from every other people on the face of the earth?”
And the Lord said to Moses, “This very thing that you have spoken I will do,
for you have found favor in my sight, and I know you by name.”
~ Exodus 33:14-17 (ESV)
Enjoy This Episode?
Here are some additional episodes about staying focused on Christ despite distractions and setbacks:
Ep 54: How She Got Her Book Published Even with a Small Platform w/ Eryn Lynum Spotify
Ep 271: How To Remain Faithful When God Has You in a Season of Waiting w/ Eryn Lynum Apple | Spotify
Ep 259: How to Pursue a Dream When You Can't See the Full Picture w/ Rachel Baker Apple | Spotify
Ep 268: How Weakness Will Show Us the Way Back to Ourselves w/ Kimberly Phinney Apple | Spotify
Ep 269: Surrendering to a Dream Out of Your Comfort Zone w/ Yohonna Smith Apple | Spotify
Ep 286: Top 3 Traps Standing in the Way of Your God-Given Purpose Apple | Spotify
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The unedited transcript for this episode of The Devoted Dreamers Podcast follows:
You’re listening to episode 335 of the Devoted Dreamers Podcast. We’re talking today about Resting in God’s Presence as You Chase a Dream.
My guest, Eryn Lynum, is back today for part two, and in this one we’re focused on the topic of her book The Nature of Rest. This is her newest book; it’s all about What the Bible and Creation Teach Us About Sabbath Living. And we’re going to talk about why that is so important to our God-shaped dream.
Our theme this month is Maintaining our focus on Christ amidst distractions and setbacks, and I thought that hearing Eryn talk about what Sabbath rest has meant for her family but also for her dream would greatly encourage you.
Sometimes the “successful dreams” we see all around us are drenched in hustle culture (sometimes, even the Christians). And we might think that we have to be in all the places, we’ve got to keep our social media engine churning out content, and that if we take a break even for a day, or a week, or two that we’re going to lose our audience and the list of worries and concerns about how to do this whole dream thing in the “right” way weighs us down and cripples our creativity.
Enter in Sabbath living.
Do you have any sort of cadence of stepping away from your dream work?
Or of putting your phone out of reach for a day (or even part of a day) to intentionally resist the dopamine hits that are so skillfully designed to trigger our commitment to a screen?
Do you run up against deadlines only to push harder in order to deliver perfection? Or have you figured out how to take a break amidst the chaos and humbly acknowledge that it does not ALL depend on you?
My friends, my word for the year is LIMITS, not because I’m good at having them, but because, I think, the Lord wants me to come to terms with mine and to a realization that NOT doing so is a subtle way I’m attempting to make myself the god of my life.
In this episode, you’ll hear the comforting truth about the impact of rest on creativity and productivity, also the strategies for weaving rhythms of rest into your daily life and into your work, and then the art of taking intentional breaks, which I’m going to do right after I finish recording this intro.
Thanks so much for coming back for part 2 of my conversation with Eryn—in case you missed the first one, it’s episode 334, just one back from this one in your app, it’s called: How God Leads Us into Our Most Passionate, Purposeful Work.
But this one, again, is all about trusting the Lord’s hand upon our work and finding ways to put the work aside, acknowledging our very human need for rest.
***
I’m your host Merritt Onsa – a Christian life coach — kinda like the Joanna Gaines for women of faith who have big dreams about how God might re-order the second half of your life — so you can use your gifts and life experiences to usher in beauty, redemption, healing and service to others.
It’s not a re-design of your home that we’re working on….
It’s a brand-new way to live — in freedom… free from fear, free from second-guessing yourself all the time, and free from the lies that the enemy has used to keep you quiet and playing small in the past.
And isn’t it about time more of us who believe in Christ started living that way?!
I’m on a mission to engage 10,000 women worldwide to start taking intentional and purposeful steps that will bring their God-shaped dreams to life!
If you believe in Jesus, and you see His work in your life and you’re aware that you’ve been given gifts, talents, and a life story that could serve and benefit others. … maybe you’re among those 10,000.
I hope that you are…
Because you’re here listening to a podcast about dreams – maybe you’re looking for a chance to see if your dream has LEGS. You want to try it on for size and figure out if it’s possible. You want to be inspired and encouraged that there’s hope for what you’ve been dreaming all these years.
Maybe you’ve been too fearful in the past. Or someone dashed your dreams with a comment that hit too close to home. Or you just haven’t had time to figure out how to proceed.
Well, my friend…This is Your time. This is Your space.
If you have big Ideas for how God could use the gifts He’s given you and the years of your life that remain, and you have a dream that would serve others – let’s figure out how to turn that heartfelt hidden dream into real, actionable plans with impact for God’s kingdom work in the world.
Merritt Onsa:
So, Eryn, in last week's episode, we ended talking about God's hand upon our dreams. And I want to get into specifically some of the things that you have written about in your new book, The Nature of Rest.
And by the way, welcome back. Glad you're here again. Thank you.
Eryn Lynum:
Thank you for having me back.
Merritt Onsa:
Yeah, I think this topic specifically, about as we think about our God-shaped dreams, as a lot of women who are listening are considering the steps it takes to pursue something, like create something that's never existed before, like you've done with your books and your podcast. It requires our hands, it requires our work and a lot of energy and effort and just so much of our hearts. And I think we can get really, like, easily wrapped up in the busyness of producing whatever it is.
And you mentioned to me this, your new book talks about the deep roots of rest in scripture. And I think there's a lot that we need to know about that as women with big ambitions and dreams that we are walking alongside God with.
So that's a very long question. But will you go there a little bit with us and talk about what you share in your book about this?
Eryn Lynum:
Yeah. When I began diving into okay, what does scripture say about rest? Our family was in this season. We were so tired. We were just depleted. We're running three businesses, homeschooling our four kids. But no matter where you are, whatever you're doing, we are all tired. Maybe you're not physically tired with a job, but you are mentally tired. Maybe you're caring for aging parents or a newborn. We are all tired.
And that's where we were at. And that's when we began to Sabbath as a family, once a week, a full day. And I really wanted to know, okay, what does scripture say about rest? Because, you know, we hear these verses here and there. We always think of Matthew 11, Jesus saying, Come unto me, all who are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
But what I found is that rest is all throughout scripture; the roots of rest run deep and wide. And we see that rest was hinted at during creation, established in the wilderness, and fulfilled at Calvary.
And so even like talking about our propensity, especially as women with God shaped dreams, like, we want to create, we want to produce, because God put that within us and that's good. That came before the fall. That is not part of the curse.
But we see at creation that God gave us a beautiful model for this, because when you think about it, God created everything in six days. And then he rested not because he needed to. Isaiah says God does not grow tired or weary. But I believe it was for two reasons. The first was to stop and delight. The word Sabbath can come from the Hebrew Shabbat, which can mean to both stop and delight.
How often do we simply stop to delight in what God has allowed us to do? Yet that's what he did. And I picture him like strolling through the garden and listening to the birds and taking in the fragrances and the colors that he just made.
So to stop and delight, but secondly, to give us a pattern. Because while God worked and then rested, he created Adam, the first person on the sixth day. So Adam's first full day was a day dedicated to rest. And it shows us that while God works and then rests, we were always meant to start with rest. And when we start from rest, that fuels all of our endeavors and everything that God calls us to.
And that's what my family has seen. Like it was a big step of faith to start resting. I felt like I just had these major doubts. How are we going to get everything done with one less day a week?
But what we found is that God's math works, that he blesses this, that when we trust him, because Sabbath is an act of faith, rest is an act of faith, especially when you are fueled up and excited about the work. But he blesses that so that the work becomes all the more richer and impactful.
Merritt Onsa:
Will you give us then, like the early parts of this? How did you decide what Sabbath rest was going to look like for your family?
Eryn Lynum:
For us, we knew we needed to go extreme. Some people will not need to go as extreme as we did. We decided to follow the traditional Hebrew model of Friday sundown to Saturday sundown. And people ask me, why don't you Sabbath on Sunday? Like most people Sabbath on Sunday.
Well, Sunday is super important for us for community and fellowship and worship. But it is not restful when you have young kids to get them up and ready for church and to church. And by the time you get home, like, yeah, your spirit is filled, but you're probably a little weary. And so for us, we needed a separate day set aside for rest. And that's why we do Friday to Saturday.
And for us it's still no devices. I actually I have an away message I set on my email, so people know, Hey, I'm Sabbathing. If you email me on the weekend, I'm not gonna see it until Monday. And that takes away my self-imposed pressure to even check or see if I need to respond to anything. And then my phone goes into focus mode. So really only my mom can text me in case of emergency. I don't get anything else. And so we put away screens.
And for the first year, we didn't even drive anywhere. We had to learn to stay. We were really bad at staying. And that was such a sweet year of spending time at home together, playing games, eating great food, going outside, chatting with neighbors. That's still what most of our Sabbath looks like. Only after the first year, we realized we missed hiking on the weekend. And so we worked in where still Saturday morning we wake up slow. We usually have like a big tasty brunch together.
We'll play outside, we'll read books. But then Saturday afternoon we'll probably head to the hills and go Sabbath in creation. But for us, it really is going back to that idea of stop and delight, stopping and stepping away from anything that causes hurry, rush, discontent, stress—and delighting in the best of life. Getting to those things that we always want to do but don't make time for during the week, spending time together as a family, reading great books, like everything that fills us up and refreshes us.
Merritt Onsa:
And every member of your family does this?
Eryn Lynum:
Yeah. Yeah, we do. And I know that can be trickier at different stages. Yeah. Like for us, my husband and I get to sleep in because our kids are at the age where we can sleep in now. It's going to look different if you have a newborn. And if your kids are driving, they may not want. They may not be on board with this if they want to go hanging out with friends.
And so the thing about Sabbath is God meant it as a gift for us, not us to serve Sabbath. And so we have to adapt and change. And after over three years of doing this, our family has done that where we get into what I call a Sabbath rut, where it's just not as life giving, feels a little stale. And so we'll switch up our activities or our rhythm or whatever to keep it refreshing and keep it that day of delight.
Merritt Onsa:
And you've noticed, I assume, how this has fueled the work that you're doing on your podcast and providing resources to homeschool families and all of that.
Eryn Lynum:
Completely. Because when you think about it, when God, the first mention of Sabbath is in Exodus 16, and this is when the Israelites are in the wilderness and God says, gather enough on the sixth day for the seventh day. Don't go out and gather. This is a Sabbath day. They had no context for this; first mention of Sabbath. So he's calling them to this act of faith. And what I've seen is that when we trust God with that, we have become, during the week, so much more productive and effective and impactful and creative. One, because I know that a day of rest is coming.
So I know I need to be really focused and get the work done so that I can truly rest. And I don't feel like I left anything on the table. That's when I'm able to truly and fully rest on Sabbath. And then the coolest thing happens. Like we, we know from science that when our brain is allowed to rest, it unlocks our potential, our creative potential, our potential as leaders. Like, there's so much science behind this. And we found that because after a day of rest, and again, a lot of times we'll read good books, nonfiction or fiction. And I'll have my journal and I'll write by hand.
I'll be taking notes, so that when Monday comes, I am so ready. I'm ready to write, I'm ready to podcast. I have all these ideas I'm excited about because I stepped away and was able to rest. So my work has become all the more rich and enjoyable because of it.
Merritt Onsa:
Yeah. I think what you said about knowing that you're taking a day off, I mean, you think about if I'm going to go on a vacation, like, there's things I have to finish before I leave. Now it doesn't help to try to fit two weeks of work into one. So, not what I mean. But yeah, knowing there's a break coming requires some intentionality in the time that you do spend at work.
Eryn Lynum:
Yeah.
Merritt Onsa:
Yeah. That's really helpful.
Eryn Lynum:
Yeah. And even my husband has seen this too. Like when we, before we started Sabbathing—so he runs a construction company—and he was exhausted. He was a one man show at that point. He had been working tirelessly for years on this business and we were hardly paying the bills. And then we take this big step of faith to start resting, to give a full day away and set it aside for rest. Three years later, he has a team of 10. He's an incredible leader. He has grown these leadership qualities that like, it's just amazing to see as a wife, he has all these strategies in place.
He has an office and he's grown his revenue by 500%.
Merritt Onsa:
Oh my gosh.
Eryn Lynum:
All while Sabbathing with his family.
And that's not to say, like, this isn't like prosperity gospel—do this and God will do this—but it shows God's math works.
***
Have you ever felt that little nudge, that pull toward something meaningful, something God might be inviting you into, I call it a God-shaped dream. You know it’s there, and yet, sometimes your inner critic shows up bossier than your faith?
That accusing voice that says, “Who do you think you are?” The second-guessing. The shame spiral.
My sister in Christ, all of that is imposter syndrome. And it’s not from God.
However, believing what’s true and allowing such truth to rule over the lies is easier said than done.
And this is exactly why I created Dreamers Unleashed—a live group-coaching experience to help you move from feeling stuck and in a cycle of lies, insecurity and striving on your own strength to boldly living in the truth of who you are in Christ—equipped, confident, and free to pursue your God-given dreams with joy and the authority of Christ.
The next round of Dreamers Unleashed starts in June and this is just the opportunity you’ve been looking for to learn how to exchange lies for God’s truth.
Together, we’ll unpack the stories we’ve believed, open Scripture to remember who we really are, and start stepping into the dreams God has placed on our hearts—with clarity and courage.
Doors open in May, but space is limited.
So you’re going to want to join the waitlist now at merrittonsa.com/impostersyndrome so you can be the first to know when enrollment opens.
It’s time to remember who you are—and who God made you to be.
***
Merritt Onsa:
And so there's another chapter in your book that you mentioned to me about abiding and living at rest. So that's kind of another piece of that. Will you dig into that a little bit?
Eryn Lynum:
Yeah. Because, okay, we can't live in Sabbath, even if you're able to give a full day, a week to it, and if you can't start with four hours.
But even when we're not in Sabbath, you know, I talk about these other ways to experience rest. Selah pauses as part of the book, and that's experiencing daily rest, bringing rest rhythms into your everyday. And there's seasons of rest.
There's all these different ways that we can experience rest. But when we are in the thick of it, when we are in the chaos, in the frenzy, we can't step away. We have to remember that God's restful presence is always with us.
Now, I think back to Exodus 60, or, sorry, Exodus 33, I believe it is. And Moses is about to go to battle. And I'm going to paraphrase this, but basically God says, by the way, I'm not going with you. You're a stubborn people and I will not go with you.
And Moses says, Lord, if you do not go with us, it will be a tragedy. How will the people know that we are distinct among the nations? And God shows mercy and says, I will go with you and I will give you rest.
Now fast forward. Because of Jesus, we have the Holy Spirit inside of us. We always have God's presence. He always goes with us. And so, like, this refrain that I'm playing through my mind when I am just in the thick of it and there's a lot going on and it's not Sabbath day, I'm just, Lord, your restful presence goes with me. Give me rest.
And he brings this deep, like that is that indescribable, abiding peace, knowing that his restful presence is always with us.
Merritt Onsa:
Yeah. And it's like we need that reminder no matter what we're going through. And I love that word abide. And just. It's not something I have to do. It's just a remembering.
Eryn Lynum:
Except that we have to. The only part we have to is like that word abide can mean to dwell, to remain, and to stay. I talked about our first whole year Sabbath being this practice of staying. Yeah. And so, like, that's. That's the difficult part for us because we want to go, go, go. And God is saying, hey, linger, linger, for a moment.
Merritt Onsa:
Yeah. And everything around us is saying, go, go, go, go, go. And. Yeah. And I think that makes me think about, like, learning to say no. Who was. Somebody told me a long time ago, like, just because your calendar has an opening doesn't mean you should put something there.
Eryn Lynum:
It was like, yes, amen.
Merritt Onsa:
Yeah, I've never considered that, but wow, what a profound choice to stay and not go just because someone asked. You know, I mean, I think about kid birthday parties. You know, how many birthday parties can you actually go to in a year?
Eryn Lynum:
Right?
Merritt Onsa:
Like, yes, we love you and want to celebrate you, and we are at capacity. And just because that space is open in my calendar doesn't mean I have to go.
Eryn Lynum:
Yeah, completely.
Merritt Onsa:
Yeah. Well, I definitely want to kind of take a hard right turn here and talk a little bit about, as you do this work that you are very passionate about, is it… Is pursuing this dream financially sustainable for you? And how will you talk about the ways that you have found to make this not just fun work, or enjoyable hobby, but provide for your family?
Eryn Lynum:
For many years it was not. And even when a book does well, and like, my books did well, according to publishers, even when a book does well, you don't make money on a book.
Merritt Onsa
Right. It’s so sad.
Eryn Lynum:
A passion project.
Merritt Onsa:
It's a passion project, right?
Eryn Lynum:
Yeah, yeah. And so for many years, it didn't. And so I did a lot of other work on the side.
I have a background in marketing and web design, and I ended up working with this incredible company here in Colorado for five years. I started just writing inspirational content for them and then worked into managing all their customer service and marketing, and I loved it. And it was what the Lord had for our family in that time. It allowed me space to practice my craft and learn so much and impact people.
But when the podcast began taking off, I really felt the Lord saying, this is what I have for you.
Like, this is your purposeful, passionate work. And so it was months of praying about it and talking it over with my husband, and ultimately, we just really felt the Lord saying it was time for me to step out of that marketing work, which, again, I loved it. So it was hard, but also it was a pretty major part of our income, and we depended on it. And so it was this step of faith.
And at the same time, we were beginning to take on sponsors for the podcast and getting to a point where we could have some advertisers on because of the size of the listenership. And so I was praying through that, like, what kind of partnerships should we have? I want to honor God in this. I want to honor my listeners in this.
And I think it was the same week that I decided to step out of the marketing work. We brought on two new sponsors that were a perfect fit. And it almost dollar for dollar, it was actually a little more, made up for the work I was stepping away from. And it was just God's confirmation, this is what you're supposed to be doing. And he's been so faithful since to do exactly that.
Merritt Onsa:
And how many hours would you say you were working at that job?
Eryn Lynum:
Yeah, I mean hour for hour. I was working more at that job.
Merritt Onsa:
Than you were devoting to your podcast?
Eryn Lynum:
I think so, yeah. Now, I think now I'm devoting about the same amount because we're growing so much and adding so many new elements to it. So I think now I'm working about the same amount. But the biggest thing is like the joy and the depth of purpose. Like I know without a shadow of a doubt that this is what I'm supposed to be doing. And I couldn't say that before.
Merritt Onsa:
What changed?
Eryn Lynum:
It was just going back to like God showing me who he created me to be. That I am so excited to wake up at 5am each day, spend time with the Lord and then dive into why and how do puffer fish blow up? Why are they spiky? Because a little five-year-old girl sent me a video asking me to let her know.
And the feedback and hearing from these families every week through emails and through voicemails, the kids can call in and ask questions that we play on the podcast and then we answer them and to hear their excitement and how like I got this little letter in the mail this week from a family and it was five hand-drawn cards from each of their children and they're mentioning specific episodes and what they learned and drawing the creatures. Like there's nothing like that. To see the people of God coming around truth and getting excited about it and knowing that these seeds of truth are going to stay with these children and are going to grow and sprout and flourish. That's how I know.
Merritt Onsa:
Yes! That's so beautiful.
The last thing I want to ask you is if you remember Eryn Lynum of 2017, what would you, Eryn of 2025 want her to know about pursuing a God-shaped dream?
Eryn Lynum:
I would tell her, listen to your husband; he's right when he said, “This is going to take time.”
I remember he would point to other authors that I admired and he would say, Eryn, look how many books they published before they “made it.”
And what is making it, after all, right, like, trust, be okay, know that it's going to take years and that that's necessary and be there in that time of growth, just asking God, okay, what are you teaching me right now that's going to be necessary for that future work? And being content there, as hard as it is, as much as we want to rush ahead and just see the end goal, just being content as that caterpillar in the chrysalis, trusting that God is saying, just imagine, just imagine what I have for you to do.
My friends, tune in every week. Like I said, this is going to be a weekly show this year. Invite your friends. Share this episode and mostly trust God’s guidance for the dream that He has given you.
Finally, Daughter of the King, you were made for a beautiful purpose. Your identity and security rest in him, as does your dream, because the Lord is good and his ways are always good. No weapon formed against you will prosper because you belong to Him.
Until next week, stay faithful, keep dreaming. And remember, trusting God with your next step doesn’t mean it isn’t going to be scary. It means taking the step anyway. That’s what faith is.
You are welcome here among women braving those scary steps in faith, knowing our dreams matter because they are His.
Until next time, I’m Merritt Onsa, your dream coach and sister in Christ walking by faith with you in the dream.
Have a great week.
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