Sabbath

Image Courtesy mjimages

For many Sabbath may look like the picture above. Doing nothing.What is the Sabbath and what does it mean for us? Ideas of Sabbath could be arranged on a very diverse spectrum. Today, you might say that some of us do not really celebrate a Sabbath at all and thus there are no restrictions, while others may have been restricted to the point that they could not play outside and were only allowed to read books and attend church. Sabbath was equivalent to  Sunday and it meant there was no shopping or going out for dinner, but it was a “quiet” day with special clothes that you could not get dirty. What was your thought of Sabbath?

Two weeks ago, Krystal and I went to the RHMA Small Town Pastors Conference in Morton, Illinois. One of the seminars that we went to was led by Dr. Don and Nell Sunukjian, who serve as professors at the Talbot School of Theology. The title of the seminar was “Stamina and Joy for the Long Haul.” One of the major perspectives of their view for joy and stamina was a recovery of the Sabbath. And while it is fresh in my mind I share these ideas with you…

As Dr. Sunukijan reminds us, The Sabbath was instituted before the law in creation. Genesis 2:3-5 says, “Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. ² And on the seventh day God finished his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done. ³ So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God rested from all his work that he had done in creation.” The “Law” does not appear until Exodus. God rests. God, who is omnipotent (meaning all powerful) rested. God does not require rest however he demonstrates for us a practical and important lesson. We need to rest…maybe physically but also mentally. We cannot go 7 days a week.

If God takes a rest, then we certainly should as well. It is essential for us to do that, but practically speaking, how can we do that? Well, the Biblical pattern is one day of rest with six work days. For Pastors and their families, Sunday is not a practical day to take a “Sabbath”….because they are preaching, teaching and separate for a portion of the day. A Sabbath is something for the entire family, for us to reconnect with one another.   Set a day in the week and make it the Sabbath. Don’t do your normal work meaning the work that you would do for income or your “regular work.” So stay at home moms, you should celebrate this as well…no Laundry that day! By all means as the Sunukijans suggest, feed your family, that does not keep you from familial responsibility…but rather job responsibilities. And maybe fulfill your responsibilities in a way that grows you.

On the Sabbath, it is ok “to work” doing things that will reinvigorate you…for my Father, that means he can garden….for you that might mean baking cookies for a friend or with your kids. Use the Sabbath to connect to grow and to refresh. Don’t keep on going through all 7 days. It is not God’s intention for you or for me. The Sabbath is a gift to us….unwrap it and enjoy it. Pick a day a week as a family, mark it as a Sabbath and see how it changes your outlook.

“Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.”