Yesterday morning, I awoke with a deep and gnawing desire to go to the woods—to inhale the scent of creek bottom, decomposing maple leaves, and pungent earth.
The forest was saturated with a fresh outpouring from heaven when we arrived, and our feet padded soundlessly as we trekked down the winding path. Unfurling like a chocolate-colored ribbon through a backdrop of ochre and umber, it invited us to move beyond the surface and explore the untamed.
Maybe this is why I love wild places. I love the lack of rules and expectations. The forest is a place to rest.
We all need places to rest—places where we’re free to be real.
Your place might not be a sleeping forest on a damp spring morning, but today, I encourage you to go to your restful place.
Light the candle.
Close the door and wrap yourself in grandma’s quilt—the one that feels like a cloak of comfort—and let the love wash over you.
Nestle yourself in the corner booth of your favorite diner or coffee shop with a steaming mug and watch the world pass by.
As you do, here are a few ways to refresh your mind and refill your soul.
How to Refresh Your Mind
1. Close your eyes and begin naming every gift in your life. Let these gifts parade through your mind, and give thanks for each one.
2. Go to a window and watch the clouds pass overhead for 10 minutes. Time spent connecting with nature reduces sympathetic nerve activity and lowers cortisol.
3. Go somewhere quiet, close your eyes, and spend several minutes breathing slowly: 3 seconds inhaling and 5 seconds exhaling for at least five cycles. When we exhale more slowly than we inhale, this calms the limbic system.
4. Take a short walk around the block or down the country road. If possible, walk somewhere with trees. Many trees omit aerosols that enhance cognitive and physiological functioning.
5. Take a break from your work and drink a glass of water.
6. Read a Psalm slowly, and let the words wash over you.
7. Spend a few minutes admiring a tree, a houseplant, or any living being. This kind of soft fascination will reboot your brain.
8. Eat a crunchy apple or piece of fruit.
9. Hum your favorite song. Humming stimulates the Vagus Nerve, telling your nervous system that all is well.
10. Listen to calming music. Again, this quiets the mind.
11. If you are at home, spend a few minutes enjoying your pet. Resist the urge to simultaneously complete any additional tasks. Simply enjoy yourselves.
How to Refresh Your Mind by Soaking in These Truths:
Lastly, God’s Word heals and restores. Here are a few replenishing Bible verses to soak in the next time you feel overwhelmed.
1. “Light shines on the righteous, gladness on the upright in heart. Rejoice in the LORD, you righteous ones, and praise His holy name” (Psalm 97:11-12, NIV).
2. “You gave abundant showers, O God; you refreshed your weary inheritance” (Psalm 68:9).
3. “I have not departed from the commands of his lips; I have treasured the words of his mouth more than my daily bread” (Job 23:12).
4. “The law of the Lord is perfect, refreshing the soul” (Psalm 19:7).
5. “Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord” (Acts 3:19).
6. “I will refresh the weary and satisfy the faint” (Jeremiah 31:25).
Do What Works for You
As for me, I’m going to keep returning to the woods. I’m going to keep basking in the renewing power of God’s created world, and I’m going to let him refresh my mind.
This is an updated edition of a post originally published on Stacey Pardoe
Featured Image by Greg Rosenke on Unsplash
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