Dilligence and Rest!

The following quote comes from Bob Hoekstra's excellent daily devotional, Day by Day Grace. Considering the idea of God's rest as a promise to his people, coupled with the call for dilligence in pursuit of God's kingdom (two seemingly contradictory concenpts), Hoekstra writes:

For those who believe in the Lord Jesus, spiritual rest is promised. This rest begins with a divine rescue from the crushing burden of sin and guilt. Then, it is intended to develop into heavenly relief from the unbearable load of self-generated Christian living. Entering into this daily spiritual rest is neither an optional nor a casual matter. "Let us therefore be diligent to enter that rest." The Lord wants to stir and maintain in us an eagerness for this daily rest in Him. He wants us to earnestly and attentively seek Him for the rest that He alone can give. Our God wants to bring us along into a maturing assurance (a comprehensively developing confidence in His promises). "And we desire that each one of you show the same diligence to the full assurance of hope until the end." If we are unwilling to cry out to the Lord for such diligence in seeking His rest daily, we will eventually become spiritually lethargic: "that you do not become sluggish." God's rest is designed to produce spiritual fervency, not laziness: "not lagging in diligence, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord" (Romans 12:11).