Remember the Sabbath

Photo by Nathan Dumlao on Unsplash

Do we rest from our work, or do we work from our rest? This question can totally reframe the way we view our week and how we balance family time, extracurricular activities, volunteer service hours, and moments for rest and relaxation.

We live in a 24/7 world, and we work jobs that increasingly ask us to do more with less. If we’re not careful, we can easily spend more time on job tasks, less time with family and friends, and no time tending to our souls. Suddenly we find ourselves singing the chorus from Loverboy’s 1981 hit, “Everybody’s working for the weekend!”

So, how do we keep ourselves from falling into this cycle of running to and from our workplace before running our children to school and afternoon practices, club meetings, and rehearsals? How do we break ourselves free from the non-stop seven day schedule of busy-ness and activity?

For those who uphold the Hebrew Bible (or Old Testament) as Scripture, the solution for our non-stop, 24/7 world can be found in the books of Genesis and Exodus. According to Genesis, humankind is created on the sixth day of Creation. The very next day is the Sabbath, a day of rest and abiding in God. Therefore, the first thing that women and men are supposed to do after God creates them is to rest. Clearly, these first people were able to work from their rest instead of being put to work right away.

When we read the Ten Commandments in Exodus, we see that the fourth commandment is written differently from the others. Instead of reading, “Thou shalt not,” we are met with the word “Remember…”

“Remember the sabbath day, and keep it holy.” God knows how we operate and understands that some of us need the overtime pay or the second job or the side hustle to earn some extra income. God realizes that Americans forfeit half of their vacation time. That’s why it’s important for us to “remember” to take one day off for every six days of work, play, travel, and activity.

How can we “work from our rest” if we never take time to stop, breathe, and abide in God? It’s extremely difficult to observe the Sabbath and to keep it holy, but it’s something worth fighting for.

Remembering to take a day off each week means preparing meals the night before, taking care of chores ahead of time, putting down our smart phones, and unplugging from our devices. If we make this a priority for ourselves and our families, then God will honor our sacrifice by filling our cups and breathing new life into these old bones.

None of us are the Energizer bunny; we can’t keep going and going. We all need a day of rest. I pray that you remember to stop and make room for God this week. It will change your life for the better.

+Peace and Love from Pastor Kris

This article originally appeared in the Tour Collierville magazine. Pick up your FREE copy of the August/September issue at businesses, restaurants, and churches throughout Collierville and Germantown. We also have some copies available at the Welcome Desk during Peace Tree's Sunday morning Large Group celebration. We'll see you this Sunday at the Malco Forest Hill Cinema Grill. Doors open at 9:30 a.m. and the worship service begins at 10:00.