This Four Letter Word Could Change You
Laura Longville
Have you ever thought, “There’s never enough day to do what I want?” I do!
Life is full of many exciting opportunities. We have day-to-day responsibilities and never-ending to-do lists. Depending on your life season, you may or may not have more say in how you spend your days.
If you’re a young adult, your life consists of intense college studies, necessary work obligations, and oodles of fun.
If you have a young family, your days are full of work inside and outside the home, laundry, bathing, and eating. Repeat. EXHAUSTING! Finding time alone is almost unreasonable.
If you’re a family that includes older children, your lives are in overdrive. The usual home and work responsibilities plus lessons, ball games, transportation to and from these activities, researching secondary education options, and wondering how you will pay for it all. Who has time for your own interests, let alone rest?
If you’re an empty nester and beyond, your daily life may look a bit different. Your days are filled with work and home obligations. If you're lucky, you may be able to experiment with new interests or pick up old hobbies.
No matter what season or chapter of life you’re in, it can be challenging to find balance. Sometimes, you irrationally think you can balance all your commitments like a juggler keeping multiple balls in the air.
Time alone seems impossible, let alone a day of rest.
REST seems like a four-letter word.
Rest is God’s life-giving; God breathed four-letter word.
“How we spend our days is, of course, how we spend our lives,”
We need our days to improve so that our lives can improve.
In Soul Custody, Choosing to Care for the One and Only You Stephen Smith, inspires the reader to care for their soul. (This is one of my favorite books! I read a lot, and this book is at the top of my list). Each chapter addresses areas of our lives such as stress, choices, vocation, and rest. These areas all impact our souls.
In the chapter Soul Sabbath, Mr. Smith states we need to practice being available to God by becoming unavailable to the world. Sabbath means to cease.
It was God’s idea to stop. He created everything in six days and then took a day of rest. God is God, and He can do anything at any time, yet, He thought it important to take a day off. A day of rest is vital to our sanity. (Exodus 20:8-11)
(An interesting side note: the fourth commandment is longer than any of the other nine. Did he spend more time on this commandment because He knew we would struggle with this the most? MAYBE)
The idea is to stop striving and let go of the obligations that fill up your week. You can get into trouble when you don’t listen to this wise instruction. You cannot sustain the world’s pace without consequence.
Sabbath is your opportunity to assess the pace of your life. Let go of the continual to-do list and show up and be together. You detach from the busyness and attach to God’s way. You reconnect with the forgotten parts of yourself, a part of your soul that needs to recover.
Choose Sabbath, Then Joy
If you choose Sabbath, then you experience joy.
“If you watch your day on the Sabbath
and don’t use my holy day for personal advantage,
If you treat the Sabbath as a day of joy,
God’s holy day as a celebration,
If you honor it by refusing ‘business as usual’,
making money, running here and there---
Then you’ll be free to enjoy God!
Oh, I’ll make you ride high and soar above it all
I’ll make you feast on the inheritance of your ancestor Jacob”
Yes! God says so! (Isa. 58:13-14 MSG)
Notice the “if you do this….then this will happen” language. If you keep the Sabbath, then you encounter joy. You fill up with God’s joy as you are rejuvenated and refreshed.
Imagine taking a day of rest.
It can look different for each of you. The purpose is to stop the activities you have been doing the previous six days. I can hear your objections now.
“I don’t have time for that.”
“How will I get it all done?”
“That’s old fashioned and not relevant today,” and
“I just don’t know how to make it possible.”
Don’t Lose Heart
It will happen when you recognize the benefits and prioritize a day of rest.
Do these two things:
Take one minute and write down all the benefits you would receive by taking a day of rest.
Identify the top 2 benefits that will nourish your soul. Write each benefit on 3x5 cards in bold letters and place it somewhere prominent. Such as your bathroom mirror or on the computer.
What challenges do you face when considering a day off from your typical week? Ask yourself-
Are these actual or perceived challenges?
Besides the Bible, many books have been written about how to observe the Sabbath. It’s a vital topic that, when observed, will bring you life and joy.
The Challenge
I hope you find yourself challenged by the promise God gives. The promise says you will find joy when you take a day of rest.
I invite you to take the next month as an experiment and observe the Sabbath. Your day of rest can be custom-built by you and God! If you want more guidance on setting up your day of rest, check out this article by Stewardship Team or visit Practicing the Way, a new favorite video series. This series gives you specific ways to practice observing Sabbath.
Pray with me and ask God to show you how your day of rest can be.
Father,
Thank You for loving me so much that You gave me a day of rest. You know I need a day to slow down and stop my weekly commitments and responsibilities.
Help me trust your commandments and rest in your promises.
You know my objections to taking a day off. I fear things won’t get done; they will pile up and worsen. Remove those fears and concerns from my mind. Help me to walk forward with confidence and to trust in you.
Lay out a simple way for me to rest.
Amen
I am acting on God’s wisdom. This month I will take one day each week away from technology. I will lay my phone down and not open my computer. I am resting away from technology.
Are you with me? What things can you do or not do that will delight you on your day of rest?
I would love to hear how God is prompting you to observe the Sabbath. Leave your thoughts and ideas below. What benefits are you experiencing?
“May you taste and see that the Lord is good,” Psalm 34:8