Sabbath rest

Daily it seems as though I get up, rush through morning preparations, work through my days, run errands, prepare dinner, and attend meetings. Then I collapse into bed at night, only to start all over again. I am feeling exhausted. The exhaustion is not only physical, it is mental and emotional and spiritual as well. It seems that our society is so focused on going constantly that we no longer know how to have down time. My youngest daughter is always involved in an after school activity. My other daughter runs from school to work, then home to do homework. My college-age son mentioned a similar feeling earlier in the week in his blog. It is prevalent in our society.

Today at lunch when I read my Bible, Exodus 35:2 (NASB) spoke loudly to me: "For six days work may be done, but on the seventh day you shall have a holy day, a sabbath of complete rest to the LORD." God created our world in six days and on the seventh day He rested. The Message ends a similar verse (Exod. 31:15) this way: "on the seventh day he [God] stopped and took a long, deep breath." Hmmmm. I am seeing a tie-in with what the Lord has been showing me that I wrote about in my last post. Breathe deeply.

The Hebrew definition of Sabbath implies an intermission, a day of rest, not to work. It is sanctified as a time of reflection, a time of refreshment. How often my Sundays are spent rushing to church, only to rush home to complete that task left waiting, that chore yet to be done, that shopping still needed?

As I contemplated this, I had to consider not only my Sundays, but my whole life as well. How many times have we planned a vacation that is packed with activities? Or rushed from place to place? Isn't that what every day looks like? Where is the refreshment in that? God does want us to have a Sabbath, not as a rule to be enforced, but as a day of refreshment. Do I even know what refreshment means anymore?

God wants us to have time to take that intermission, a chance to recharge our batteries not only spiritually, but physically and emotionally. He wants us to have time to reflect, to think deeply about what He is speaking to us, about the direction our lives are headed. I don't believe He ever intended for us to rush through life without direction. He couldn't as that is the opposite of who He is. He is intentional, even about rest.

I have felt convicted by this verse. I am choosing to rest on a weekly basis. I will take time to reflect, contemplate, and be refreshed.

Blessings