We wake up on Sunday morning to find that this particular Sunday offers the clearest skies, gentlest breezes and most friendly sunshine of the entire week. Most of us will drift outside for a good bit of the day....hopefully following church....
The Lord tells us to remember the Sabbath. Years ago there were all sorts of prohibitions regarding what we must NOT do on the Sabbath -- no shopping (remember the "blue laws"), no alcoholic beverages, no television, no working with machinery...sometimes children were prohibited play time with neighbors. Those rules were implemented with the conviction that they would establish an environment and an attitude for the day. Everyone was to be more focused upon God and upon family than upon anything else.
Many of those rules seem either unnecessary or outdated, right? To a certain extent their rigidity just served to foster resentment -- a kind of whiteknuckled, binding approach to every Sunday. There may only have been a minority of folks whose focus became more God-centered because of the restrictions, but if your family includes part of that minority, they will tell you that the rules did indeed help the family be more "sabbath" oriented.
We are encouraged to approach Sabbath Days as a spiritual practice. For example, let any outdoor activity be more prayerful than "busy"...
Think about the miracle of sprouting buds.
Watch a bird couple building a nest -- or --
watch a male wren set up housekeeping!
View any yard work as a prayerful act of stewardship.
Try engaging in an act of simplicity as you play with a small child -- no electronics allowed -- cloud watch, observe bugs, fly a kite ....
If you are tired, take a nap or read a book for a couple of hours.
If you have energy, walk somewhere instead of jumping into a car.
If you find that you need to do some household chores, keep
them as simple and unmechanical as possible.
Even folding the laundry can be prayerful -- say a pray for the person to whom each item belongs.
Ask God's blessing upon your entire day -- God rested on this the 7th day. I pray that you will -- and if some "responsibility" prevents that, I pray that you will CLAIM a sabbath day within two or three days.
Blessings,
Pamela
pczarnota@crlcbrecksville.org
1 comment:
The Sabbath is a very interesting topic! Dorothy Bass who directs the Project on the Education and Formation of People in Faith at Valparaiso University wrote a paper on the topic. This practice of setting one day aside devoted to worship, family and relaxation is really at the heart of Judaism and is also a big part of Christianity. But, in order to enjoy it we must, in the Christian tradition, free it from the concept of it being full of restrictions and obligations. In Genesis we are told that God created the earth in six days and on the seventh he rested. In Deuteronomy the Jewish people are told to observe the Sabbath. This was emphasized becuse they had just been released as slaves. Being in bondage they could not have observed a day of rest but now that they were on their own they had the freedom to do it. One of our Pastors recently attended the Shabbat service at a local synagoge. There were notices in the Bulletin that no one was to even use a pen or pencil during the day because it represented work. In our busy culture we must find different ways to celebrate the Sabbath. It is no longer enforced by government. Such things as the "Blue Laws" are no longer in existence. So we all need to find our own ways to enjoy a true Sabbath. I just returned from a structured two day retreat held in the beautiful Laurel Highlands of Pennsylvannia. Some of us use our drive times to and from work. Others might use evening time when the day is drawing to a close. The monastic practice of examen is a good way to do this. Find a quiet spot just before bed time and review your day and all its activities. Run those events of the day through your mind and see where the Holy Spirit has been active in your daily life. Sabbath time is necessary for all of us. God gave it to us for "rest" and worship. It was a dedicated time for us to spend time with Him. So, like Pam says, take the time and enjoy!
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