Sabbath for Today
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On the seventh day He rested. —Genesis 2:1
Let’s talk about rest.
I’m not sure where I got it from, but I’ve spent most of my adult life believing that rest is for the very young, the very old and the very sick. I spent my parenting years continually nagging my children, “Turn off the TV and go and clean your room,” or “Go and do something productive.” Rest is a waste of time for healthy people.
And, who has time for rest anyway? There are always things to do. There are meals to cook, laundry to wash, dry, fold, and put away. The cleaning list is endless, and before you get anywhere near the end, the things you started with are dirty again. I haven’t even started talking about the important things in life like reading to your children, taking meals to the needy, volunteering at church and calling your mother. And then, you have to go to work.
We’ll rest when we’re dead, right?
Sadly, I spent way too many years living like this, even if I didn’t believe it or articulate it. I valued being capable, productive, on top of things and in control. I didn’t have time for rest. At least, not much, and I have learned the error of my ways.
We aren’t designed to work around the clock without a break. We aren’t designed to be constantly bombarded with distractions and expectations (I’m talking about you, smartphone). We aren’t designed to be workaholics. Our lives are out of balance, and our health and relationships are suffering.
I shouldn’t be surprised, but God has some pretty clear ideas about this. Rest is a high value in His economy. There has never been a week in the history of the world without a God-ordained day set aside for rest. God called it ‘Sabbath’.
Then God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it He rested from all the work of creating that He had done.
—Genesis 2:3
After the six days of creation, God rested. From the beginning of creation, God established a pattern of rest and work, not as a punishment for us but for our good. A precious gift for our health and wellbeing. A sustainable pace for the rigours of life. A way for us to build and maintain healthy relationships with one another and with God. A way for us to be constantly reminded that our value is not in our productivity but in our relationship with our creator.
As it turns out, rest is hard. It takes discipline and planning. It has to be intentional. Our default is to believe that the world revolves around us, needs us, and can’t move forward without us. We believe that we will get behind if we stop. We think it’s all about us. We forget it’s all about God.
Having a day off work, a proper day of rest, takes a lot of trust. We have to believe that God’s ways are better than our own; we have to submit to His authority over our time, our most precious commodity.
We can get caught in the legalism of the Sabbath. The Pharisees made lots of extra rules to protect the Sabbath, outlining instructions in minute detail to prevent people from breaking the Sabbath. Jesus was criticised for breaking these rules by healing people and picking grain on the Sabbath day. His response to His accusers: “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.” (Mark 2:27)
Jesus teaches us that the Sabbath isn’t about following rules; it is about taking care of ourselves and giving God His rightful place in our lives. The Sabbath was made for us, for our good.
But having a day of rest each week is difficult to do in the modern world. When I was growing up, most shops were closed on Sundays. Now it is one of the busiest days of the week. The world no longer slows down for us. We have to be intentional and break away from the pattern of the world, prioritising time to put our work away and refocus our attention on the things in life that matter most.
There is no easy way to do this. However, I believe there is a blessing for us when we follow God’s plan and disconnect from the world regularly for a Sabbath day of rest.
I love the picture of a modern Sabbath that John Mark Comer describes in his book, Ruthless Elimination of Hurry. Sabbath begins on Friday evening with a special family meal. Saturday is full of life-giving activities such as being outside in nature, or reading, napping, and playing games. On Saturday evening, it is time to prepare for the busy week ahead, rested, refreshed, and reconnected together as a family and with God. The emails, phone calls and chores wait.
When my children were young, it looked like a day with no housework. We either ate leftovers or take away. We avoided nonessential activities and enjoyed a ‘going slow’ day at home. It’s easy to spread our responsibilities evenly across the seven days of the week, but with some planning and forethought, I could do just as much in six days and enjoy a day of rest.
During my years in ministry, I had my rest day on Friday. It was a quiet day at home to read, sleep, watch a movie and do some craft. Sometimes I walked and enjoyed a coffee in a local café. It always finished with date night with hubby, our favourite time of the week.
These days it looks more like a day disconnected from technology and retail. I often cook pancakes for breakfast and spend time working on a craft project, drawing or crocheting. I will read something for fun and take a nap. The favourite part of my Sabbath is making phone calls to my kids and friends from home. The computer stays away; I take a break from social media, email and writing and let my mind sift through the activity and excitement of the week gone by.
How about you? What could a Sabbath look like for you in the season you are in? If your schedule is too full to contemplate a day of rest, I encourage you to block out a day on your calendar and protect the time you set aside. Plan your day with life-giving activities you and your family will enjoy and look forward to. Trust God with the complexity of your life and refocus on Him. I know you will be blessed.
