The email comes through with a simple message: “Praying for you to get rest today.”
It hit deeply as I was already thinking about rest but along the words of Sabbath rest.
The word gets thrown around, but the depth of meaning can be easily overlooked. I seemed to have let myself slide into thinking it meant solely going to church on Sundays.
But as of late, I am coming to realize it truly means so much more.
Sabbath > “the seventh day of the week, as the day of rest and religious observance among Jews and some Christians; any special day of prayer or rest resembling the Sabbath; any special day of prayer or rest” (dictionary.com).
Sabbath, or the Hebrew word “sabbat”, actually means to stop or to cease. When we take time to stop working, we display an act of trust that it is God holding everything together and not us. We acknowledge our hands do not need to be in everything at every single moment in time.
“Keep the Sabbath day holy. Don’t pursue your own interests on that day, but enjoy the Sabbath and speak of it with delight as the Lord’s holy day. Honor the Sabbath in everything you do on that day, and don’t follow your own desires or talk idly. Then the Lord will be your delight. I will give you great honor and satisfy you with the inheritance I promised to your ancestor Jacob. I, the Lord, have spoken!” (Isaiah 58:13-14, NLT)
As I read this Scripture, I wrote in the margin of my Bible –
Keeping the Sabbath –> reward
What are those rewards?
- “The Lord will be your delight.”
- “I will give you great honor.”
- “I will satisfy you.”
OK, if I’m honest, I like those rewards. But somehow I skipped over the part of what one must do to obtain those rewards. So I backed up a verse to get the full picture:
- “Keep the Sabbath day holy.” Set a day apart to God – to think about Him, to worship Him, to hear His Word.
- “Don’t pursue your own interests on that day.” Keep a day off from work. Your body, soul and spirit will be most grateful.
- “Enjoy the Sabbath.” May the day you set aside become a day of delight for you. May you look forward to the time you spend with Him.
- “Honor the Sabbath in everything you do on that day.” Let the Lord be your sole focus on that day.
- “Don’t follow your own desires or talk idly.” Both will lead us away from resting in Him.
Sabbath doesn’t come easily as we are so programmed to doing, going, and keeping busy. We fall into the trap of thinking these define productivity and perhaps they do in many ways. Yet in order to keep on being productive, we need time to get rested and be renewed.
Keeping the Sabbath
leads to resting in Him.
And keeping the Sabbath —> reward.
Beth Willis Miller shared a resource last week sure to bring comfort and hope to many. Her article was published and you can read about A New Song: Glimpses of the Grace Journey HERE.
Come, sit a spell. Bring your coffee, your posts, and your thoughts. If you link up, kindly visit those who have drawn up a seat around you.
Image by Karen Ruhl from Pixabay
Discovering this passage some years ago helped me realize the Sabbath wasn’t just a day off work, but it was a day for the Lord. And it’s a day of delight! I’ve come to appreciate that day of rest so much.
Delighting in the Lord and pulling aside for a rest makes a huge difference in our walk with the Lord and our perspective of life, Joanne.
I have found that the Sabbath rest is so important especially in this season of life Joanne (not only on the Sabbath but the whole season).
My WOTY is Explore & I have been enjoying exploring so many everyday things around me in new ways & seeing them in a new light during this rest season!
Blessings, Jennifer
Just reading those 2 words, ‘Sabbath rest,’ brings a sigh of peace and serenity, Joanne. We’re in the season of far fewer activities on the weekend and I couldn’t be more grateful.
This gave me great pause – “don’t pursue your own interests,” “don’t follow your own desires or talk idly” – WOW! That really changes how I view sabbath rest. . . I’m going to be turning this over in my mind!
As a kid I found Sundays to be boring. Now I look forward to my Sunday sabbath rests. I haven’t thought about “not talking idly.” That intrigues me.
When REST was my word of the year, I was getting used to a new diagnosis. God faithfully walked me through that year and revealed so much goodness through his gift of rest and his command to rest.
Rest changes everything.
I remember that as a child it was a priority for our family and so many others to keep the Sabbath and to rest in Him. I also remember struggling at times to do so during our years of raising our daughters. We often had to challenge schedules and events that didn’t align with our beliefs. I’m grateful that we were able to surround ourselves and our kids with others who shared our values. I pray for our kids and grandkids that they can hold onto the Sabbath and rest in it, too.
I got so much good from this post, Joanne. Thank you!
Beautiful message, Joanne, and much needed. We do want the rewards, but need to remember the conditions to obtain real Sabbath rest. I want to rest in the Lord and let Him be my “sole focus” that day.