Scripture of the Day: Exodus 31:15
For six days, work is to be done, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of rest, holy to the Lord. Whoever does any work on the Sabbath day must be put to death.
After reading that, I thought to myself that it is a good thing I don't live in Old Testament times. I probably would have been put to death long ago! My trusty life application bible states in reference to that verse, "The Sabbath had two purposes: It was a time to rest and a time to remember what God had done. We need rest. Without time out from the bustle, life loses its meaning...God reminds us that without Sabbaths we will forget the purpose for all of our activity and lose the balance crucial for a faithful life. Make sure your Sabbath provides a time of both refreshment and remembrance of God."
In reading Exodus, I am amazed at how many times God refers to the Sabbath. I figure it must be important (it is one of the Ten Commandments after all!) and have been very convicted because in my house we don't really take a day of rest. The Sabbath doesn't have to be Sunday, but if if it had to be any day of the week, that would be the day that fits for my household. The best we do is go to church, which does both refresh us all and help us have that remembrance of God. But the restful attitude doesn't typically linger after we get home (unless it is football season!) There is always work to be done and often a sense of urgency arises because that is the ONLY day it can get done!
But that is not how God wants us to live our lives. If rest is important to God, it should be important to us. The world around us goes 24/7 and if can't take part of that time to rest and focus on God, we will be consumed by the world. Hopefully, that is not the way we want to go!
When you get that mentality that you have to do, do, do - stop and take a breath. Thousands of years ago you would have had a whole day to rest - or else! Today it seems hard enough to take a break for 2 hours, much less 24.
I pray that if you are reading this, you will work with me to make a conscious effort to put a little more rest into our lives. I pray that the Sabbath will mean something and that we see it as something of Biblical importance instead of feeling guilty for being "lazy." Taking a whole day to do this seems hard, so I think we should attempt baby steps. Perhaps we can designate 2 hours (outside of church) to try this restful attitude to be really thankful for all the God had done and to take time to refresh yourself without outside stimulus. We can do it!
For six days, work is to be done, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of rest, holy to the Lord. Whoever does any work on the Sabbath day must be put to death.
After reading that, I thought to myself that it is a good thing I don't live in Old Testament times. I probably would have been put to death long ago! My trusty life application bible states in reference to that verse, "The Sabbath had two purposes: It was a time to rest and a time to remember what God had done. We need rest. Without time out from the bustle, life loses its meaning...God reminds us that without Sabbaths we will forget the purpose for all of our activity and lose the balance crucial for a faithful life. Make sure your Sabbath provides a time of both refreshment and remembrance of God."
In reading Exodus, I am amazed at how many times God refers to the Sabbath. I figure it must be important (it is one of the Ten Commandments after all!) and have been very convicted because in my house we don't really take a day of rest. The Sabbath doesn't have to be Sunday, but if if it had to be any day of the week, that would be the day that fits for my household. The best we do is go to church, which does both refresh us all and help us have that remembrance of God. But the restful attitude doesn't typically linger after we get home (unless it is football season!) There is always work to be done and often a sense of urgency arises because that is the ONLY day it can get done!
But that is not how God wants us to live our lives. If rest is important to God, it should be important to us. The world around us goes 24/7 and if can't take part of that time to rest and focus on God, we will be consumed by the world. Hopefully, that is not the way we want to go!
When you get that mentality that you have to do, do, do - stop and take a breath. Thousands of years ago you would have had a whole day to rest - or else! Today it seems hard enough to take a break for 2 hours, much less 24.
I pray that if you are reading this, you will work with me to make a conscious effort to put a little more rest into our lives. I pray that the Sabbath will mean something and that we see it as something of Biblical importance instead of feeling guilty for being "lazy." Taking a whole day to do this seems hard, so I think we should attempt baby steps. Perhaps we can designate 2 hours (outside of church) to try this restful attitude to be really thankful for all the God had done and to take time to refresh yourself without outside stimulus. We can do it!
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