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I don’t know about you, but the idea of living from a heart of rest sounds absolutely glorious but nearly impossible.

As someone with big goals and a bazillion dreams, it can be too easy to lose sight of what matters most and get caught in the hustle of each day.

Experiencing two miscarriages back-to-back, followed by a global pandemic, made me really reflect on and evaluate my priorities, what matters most, and what that looks like in my work, home, finances, relationships, and personal life.

And let me tell ya, learning to slow down in a busy season and realign your priorities on what matters most isn’t easy. It takes a bit of work, but it’s SO worth it.

That’s why I’m so excited to have Christy Nockels on the podcast to share her own story of moving from a place of hustle to a place of rest. 

LIVING FROM A HEART OF REST

Christy is a singer-songwriter who has toured nationwide, recorded numerous albums, and served as a worship leader for global movements like Passion Conferences and IF: Gathering. 

With all that busyness, Christy knows firsthand how easy it is to have your sense of purpose become tangled up in work and constantly doing. 

Her new book, The Life You Long For: Learning to Live From a Heart of Rest, follows her own journey of learning to slow down, and shows how to let go of hustle and achievement and instead embrace rest.

And let me tell ya, friend, Christy is AWESOME. She brings some deep wisdom and much-needed encouragement. 

My conversation with her was FIRE.

You’ll walk away feeling uplifted and empowered to take steps to simplify your life and slow down, so you can put first things first.

THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN HUSTLING AND HARD WORK

When we hear the word “capacity,” we often think about our own capacity to crank out work and keep going.

And too often we measure our own worth or value by this capacity.

But Christy brought a new meaning to the word capacity. She said, “Capacity doesn’t always have to look like us cranking out stuff. It can look like us receiving and holding the things of God.”

Sometimes capacity is about creating space to receive. It’s a reorienting and realignment of what belongs and what doesn’t.

We often try to pour out on others from a place of being empty and exhausted. But sometimes, we need to slow down and receive the rest and love God is offering to us. 

Then we can be filled up to pour out on others from a place of fullness. 

As Christy said, “There’s a difference between hustling and hard work.” 

Hustling comes from a mindset of thinking it’s all up to us (which is a huge lie). Hustling gets us looking out for ourselves and we can get into a commodity mentality where we view ourselves and even others by what we can produce in this life. 

Hustling is the world’s economy and it ends up holding us back and keeping us from slowing down.

Hard work doesn’t have to come from hustling. 

It might seem a little counter-intuitive, but we can work hard from rest. We can get things done from a place of rest when we’re able to live from our fullness in God. 

LIVE INSIDE OUT

One thing that Christy shared really stuck with me. She used a bullseye as a visual as she talked about living from the inside out, instead of outside in.

Picture that target and imagine that God is at the center of the bullseye. The things that matter most are closest to the bullseye and as you get farther out from the bullseye, you start to see parts of your life that are a lower priority. 

So your family would be right in the center, near the bullseye, and as you go to the outer rings, you might see your work or tasks that need to be done.

When you live outside in, you’re coming from those outer rings, from your capacity and what you can do, and trying to push into your calling. You approach God and others from a commodity mentality where you’re focused on doing rather than being in relationship.

But when you live inside out, you start with the bullseye and your relationship with God. You start with who you are to God and you work outward.

Just think: what would it look like to live inside out? What if you hit the bullseye, focused on your relationship with God, and the community around you, and let God take care of all those outer rings? What if you let Him hold up all the things you’re so busy trying to hold up on your own? 

What if you put the first things first?

As Christy said, “People before productivity. Community before capacity.”

START LIVING FROM A HEART OF REST

If you’re ready to slow down in a busy season and realign your priorities on what matters most, you won’t want to miss this episode.

So take some time to slow down, grab those headphones, and tune in to learn:

• What it looks like to slow down in a busy season and realign your priorities
• How to move from a place of constantly doing to a place of rest
• How to make boundaries and rest when people give you pushback
• The difference between hustling and hard work
• What it looks like to live from the inside out

Once you’ve listened, let us know in the comments: what is your biggest takeaway from this episode?

And if you’re interested in hearing more from Christy, go visit her at christynockels.com.