Many of us think if we have some time to rest, whether that's an afternoon or a day of the week, the best way to spend it is on the couch scrolling through our phones or binging a show on the television. But when we do that what we're really doing is becoming tired in a different way. These activities don't do a lot to renew us physically, emotionally, or spiritually. In fact, they often leave us feeling more anxious and distracted than we were before.
God knew this, and so he would have his people take one day a week, the Sabbath, to rest. God built this rhythm in to our lives because he loves us as a creator, and he knows what's best for us. The people in the old Testament we're also required to keep yearly rhythms, in addition to the daily and weekly rhythms. These were holy days or celebrations that could last a week or more. There were feasts like the feast of Purim or Passover, and these yearly rhythms were built into the calendar to be times to focus on community and celebration.
Wayne Mueller in his book on the Sabbath says that if we do not allow for a rhythm of rest in our overly busy lives, illness can become our Sabbath. Our pneumonia, our cancer, our heart attack, our accidents create Sabbath for us. We have some opportunities, when we have no choice but to rest, to experience God differently, to be reminded of our dependence on him. Rest is a time to be, it's not a time to do. It's not so much about habits and best practices. It's more about being creation. It's understanding that God is creator and he is shepherd.
DISCUSSION/REFLECTION QUESTION: Do you take rest as seriously as you should, given what Scripture tells us about God's view of it? If not, what are some ways that you can start prioritizing it, both daily and weekly?
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