Sabbath (part 2/2)

Rest is a gift from God. In the limitations of our humanity, our bodies, souls, and minds demand a time to cease activity and celebrate the One Who Gives Us Rest. We were not designed for the pace of western culture. Constant busyness, forced fast paces, and little to no time to simply sit and slow down is unnatural. It goes against our design. Even God, who is in every way more powerful, limitless, and perfectly complete than us took a day of rest after creating this world. He didn’t need rest because He does not grow tired or weary, and yet He chose it because there is value in slowing down and not working nonstop. God calls us to spend a day of rest with Him so that we can live a life of rest with Him. Sabbath is not just one day of the week, it’s a mindset and a lifestyle. Through setting aside one day to get filled up by His Spirit, we can then continue to live in His Spirit for the rest of the week in the midst of busyness and packed schedules. Sabbath is a gift and a blessing, not a burden. It’s not just any day off from work, school, and normal life, its an opportunity to accept the invitation He extends to stop what we’re doing, rest in His presence, delight in how He’s blessed us, and worship Him with our whole beings. Rest looks different for everyone. For some, it may be extra sleep, staying home all day, not doing chores, or staying off devices. For others, it may be hanging out with people that are energizing, spending a few hours at a coffee shop, or thrifting at a favorite local store. For me, what’s most restful is spending as much time as I can in nature, preferably by myself or with a few people closest to me. Sabbath shouldn’t be a day that you dread or don’t look forward to. It also doesn’t have to mean sitting and doing nothing all day. It’s simply an opportunity to create your ideal day and spend intentional time with God in order to refuel so you can love and serve others to the best of your ability for the remainder of the week. There’s a podcast I’ve been listening to called the Fight Hustle, End Hurry podcast that is solely focused on bringing awareness about the importance of slowing down and how to implement practices into your life that align with the lifestyle that Jesus modeled. You should check it out, there is 10 episodes and each one is about 30 minutes. The 9th episode is about Sabbath specificially, and it was what inspired this blog! I encourage you to listen to it, I’ve learned so much from it about Kingdom culture vs. western culture, the importance of resting with God, and how to live at a pace of peace the way Jesus did.