Did you have a good Summer Break? Perhaps you went away? Maybe you stayed close to home? Maybe you didn’t get your vacation yet, and you’re looking forward to a time away later on this year. One way another, whether you’re looking back on your rest time with fond memories or you can’t wait for your holidays to begin, I think we can all agree that time off is very important. Like the regular cycle of sleep and wakefulness we repeat every day, we need a cycle of work and relaxation in order to be at our happiest, healthiest best.
The concept of a vacation isn’t something new. It isn’t something Unions dreamt up in order to help workers; it’s not something devised by Governments in order to keep the population appeased. It’s not even something created by lazy people so that they might get out of working for a while. The concept of the vacation is one devised by God in order to bless both Creation and Creator.
God didn’t call it a holiday or vacation; it’s not a break or a getaway. God’s plan for rest is called a Sabbath. It is a time specifically set aside for us to do no work; in fact, it was a time God set aside for Himself after having completed the hard work of creating everything from nothing. That’s right: the first Sabbath was the seventh day of creation, the day God sat back from His labours and simply enjoyed the universe and everything in it.
Sabbath is not for religious purposes. God didn’t create it as a day to glorify Him; He created it because we need to rest from our labours. We need to stop working one day in seven for our physical health. That is the first and foremost reason for the Sabbath. Over time, the Sabbath rest included a time of celebration and praise, or what has become our Sunday worship.
Worship, however, is only an hour or so of our Sabbath, but our Sabbath is not just an hour or so long; it’s an all day thing. One whole day in Seven to rest, relax and recover from our six days of toil. So, before and after church, we still have a day in which to relax. What to do, what to do? A picnic might be nice. Maybe a relaxing walk in the park. Perhaps a visit with family or an afternoon by the pool. As the seasons change, so too do our rest options, but not the option to rest. Our Sabbath is meant to be nothing more or less than a day of safe and holy rest.
Somehow we’ve forgotten that. We’re so lost in our own way of doing things that we’ve forgotten one of the first gifts God ever gave us: Sabbath. Rest. Relaxation. Not rushing to the store; not doing overdue chores; not practicing for, or competing in, the next big game; not even doing last minute homework. Rest. Vacation. Taking a break. Getting away from it all, even if it’s just sitting and reading about a far off destination. The summer break may be over, but our Sabbath continues once a week. I pray you get a chance to enjoy it in earnest.
No comments:
Post a Comment