Remember the Sabbath

Remember the Sabbath and keep it holy. We've all heard and read these words from Exodus many times. We've all lamented about the state of 'Sabbath' in our communities with little guy sports, cheerleading, and shopping all being acceptable activities on Sunday mornings now. We remember a time when that wasn't so, blah, blah, blah.

And although we can point fingers at the economy, Saturday night mass, or working moms and dads as the reason for this switch, I'm going to suggest that before we look outside the church for this change, maybe it is time to look inside.

How good are we as pastors at encouraging Sabbath rest? How good are you at taking Sabbath rest? We know we have to work on Sunday so when is your Sabbath? Do you honor it and keep it holy? Or, are you too busy to take the time off allotted to you to renew your body, mind, spirit and soul? Does the business of the church take a back seat to rest? When you see your folks are weary and exhausted do you suggest a Sabbath break to recharge their spiritual batteries?

And I know you are going to argue with me that Sabbath is about worship and yes it is. It is about worship, rest, celebration, play, singing, making love, conversation and dancing. It is about total rest that allows our senses to go from high alert to high praise for all of God's blessings.

How do you encourage Sabbath rest in your people? Wayne Muller writes in his book, Sabbath, that "Sabbath is a way of being in time where we remember who we are, remember what we know, and taste the gifts of spirit and eternity." Is that how you frame Sabbath time? Or is a typical Sunday/Sabbath a time for your folks to sandwich in one hour of worship between committee meetings and church projects all the while checking their watches counting the minutes to be done so they can get on with the next thing on their list?

Without rest, without Sabbath time, without the blessing of stopping, the church will never be healthy let alone well and thriving. The body just can't go on indefinitely without a rest. Even God rested.