Sabbath Rest

Source: theodysseyonline.com

As I've posted before, rest does not come easy for me.

But over the past six weeks or so, I have been reflecting upon the Sabbath like never before.

Maybe it was this podcast I heard after the New Year on Sabbath.

Maybe it was this book I read recently about the interplay of work and rest.

Maybe it was the gentle nudging I've had over the years about the need to slow down and give my soul space to breathe.

But whatever it was, I am now in a period of prayerful consideration about Sabbath and what it needs to look like for my family and me, especially as we head into the season of Lent.  I'm taking baby steps to set apart the seventh day and make it a truly restful and worshipful experience for us all.

My first exposure to Sabbath was when I was rooming with a friend of mine during my last few years of medical school.  She faithfully observed the Sabbath each Sunday by worshiping at church and then returning home to rest by reading, napping, journaling, and taking a break from running errands and studying.  Her life slowed down each Sunday, and by extension, I saw that her life rhythm looked very different from mine.  You see, although I also worshiped at church each Sunday, the pace of my life didn't really change all that much on the Lord's Day.  I usually shopped for groceries or ran other errands in the afternoon, caught up on laundry, and studied for upcoming tests.  Sundays were worshipful for me, but I never would have described them as truly restful.

"People who keep Sabbath live all seven days differently." --Walter Brueggemann

Fast forward a decade or more, add in a husband and three kids, and here I am, still finding it difficult to truly rest.  Like the Israelites in the desert, I find it difficult to sit back and allow the Lord to provide for me on the Sabbath day.  For the first time in a long time, I am convicted to slow down and learn more about this sacred and ancient rhythm of Sabbath and start practicing it in my life.

The concept of Sabbath beckons to us from the very first chapter of Genesis, at the creation of the world and everything in it.  The Scriptures say that God created everything that exists in six days--the light, the dark, the sea, the stars, the animals, plants, and man--and then he rested on the seventh.  This rest was not out of necessity, I am sure--for why would an all-powerful, all-sufficient God need to rest?  No, God's Sabbath rest was more of a cessation of work for the purpose to reflect upon, and even to celebrate, the culmination of a week's worth of creativity which He deemed to be "good" and "very good."

Soon after, in Genesis chapter 2, we see God give the Sabbath a special status and make it "holy."  When you think about it, this is truly unique and quite peculiar: you might think of a place as being deemed "holy"--a temple, a mountain, an alter, perhaps--but a time?  God is really trying to impress upon us the importance of this day (see Genesis 2:3). 

We then see Sabbath first commanded to be observed by the Israelites after God delivers them from Egypt in the book of Exodus.  When God provides manna from heaven for them to eat in the desert, He instructs them to gather twice as much manna before the Sabbath, so they do not have to gather any on this seventh day of rest (see Exodus 16).  And then, a few chapters later, we see God give the Ten Commandments to Moses atop Mt. Sinai, the fourth of which being the command to "remember the Sabbath day and keep it holy" (see Exodus 20). (Interestingly enough, this command is the longest and most detailed of the ten!)

The Ten Commandments are then reiterated to God's people when Moses is speaking to the nation of Israel before he dies, and they go on to enter the Promise Land under Joshua's leadership.  This time, however, a new reason for remembering the Sabbath and keeping it holy is mentioned:

"Remember that you were slaves in Egypt and that the Lord your God brought you out of there with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm. Therefore the Lord your God has commanded you to observe the Sabbath day."  --Deuteronomy 5:15

Here we see that God is telling His people that by observing the Sabbath, they are turning their back on Egypt and all that it represents, remembering that they are now free and provided for, and no longer have to work without rest like slaves.

In his book Garden City: Work, Rest, and the Art of Being Human, pastor John Mark Comer refers to the Sabbath as the "anti-Pharaoh."  He argues that rest is a byproduct of freedom; slaves cannot rest and are driven to work without ceasing.  But God, in His wisdom, commands His people to rest to remind themselves that they are no longer slaves, but are freed men, provided for by God Himself, able to rest and truly celebrate the Sabbath.

Interestingly, we see in the New Testament gospel accounts that Jesus almost always performed his miracles on the Sabbath.  Perhaps this day not only holds worship and rest for us as believers, but healing, true body-and-soul healing, as well!

And so, I am in the midst of trying to figure out what Sabbath rest needs to look like for my life and for the life of my family.  Should it involve hanging out with friends?  Only reading books and resting? Is it OK to work-out?  Cook?  It can start to get confusing, and legalistic, pretty quickly.

In his book, John Mark Comer suggests filtering everything through the following grid when considering what to do on the Sabbath:

1. Is this restful?
2. Is this worshipful?

If the activity in question doesn't jive with either of these categories, he suggests waiting to do it on another day.  He also speaks to the fact that on the Sabbath, we have "enough."  So he avoids doing anything--like reading a magazine or visiting a website--that would make him want more.  He also powers off his phone and laptop and gets offline for the day.  However, he stresses that Sabbath can look different for everyone.  What is restful and worshipful for one person, may not be for another.  Also, for pastors and many leaders in the church, Sundays are usually a hectic work day.  It would probably be best for them to choose a different day of the week, or find a 24-hour period bridging the evening of one day, and the morning and afternoon of the next.

One challenge I've had is trying to dove-tail my idea of Sabbath with those of my husband and children.  I had to laugh the other week when my husband, after checking in on me for the third time during some napping and reading time one Sunday afternoon, politely mentioned to me, "I am pretty sure that Adam and Eve did not go into their separate corners of the Garden to rest and worship God by themselves all Sabbath."  Ha!  Spoken like a true extrovert, right?!  Come to find out, his idea of Sabbath looks more like spending time together as a family and playing board games.  So, we will have to find a healthy balance of alone time and together time as we observe the Sabbath as a family in the weeks and months ahead!

"Sabbath is a chance to take a long, hard look at our lives and to re-tune them to the right key.  To make sure that our life is shaped around what really matters.  And when we see stuff in our life that is out of whack, then we turn to Jesus, and he comes and does his healing Sabbath work."  --John Mark Comer

So what about you, dear friend?  Have you given serious and prayerful consideration to what the Sabbath is and what it should look like in your life?  If not, I'd highly encourage you to learn more about it and take a step of faith in obedience to this command.  We can take baby steps in this practice together!  I'd highly recommend this fantastic sermon from John Mark Comer on the Sabbath for a great overview on the topic, and, if you have the time, his book mentioned above is a very enjoyable and informative read. 

I truly believe the Lord has much to teach us as we obey Him in His command to remember the Sabbath and keep it holy.  I see now that it is His way for us to say "yes" to delighting and resting in Him, and His way for us to say "no" to Egypt and its task-driven system.

Will you join me?