Wednesday, September 25, 2024

What would you say if someone told you that you could break a cycle of stress and fear? Believe it or not, it might be as easy as regularly engaging in the spiritual practice of Sabbath.

Barb Roose continued our series, Stronger than Stress, this week by teaching on the practice of Sabbath. The word Sabbath comes from the Hebrew word, Shabbat, which means “rest or cease (from work).” It is a 24-hour period that is set aside to give us time to heal our bodies, physically, mentally, and spiritually. It is a rhythm of rest for our souls and an invitation to invest in our relationships with God and others. The purpose of Sabbath is to remind us that God is the provider and Savior of our lives. 

Exodus 16:29a
“They must realize that the Sabbath is the Lord’s gift to you. That is why he gives you a two-day supply on the sixth day…”

After the Israelites escaped Egypt, they arrived in the Sinai Desert. Having been enslaved for about 358 years, they had a mindset of scarcity, fear, and exhaustion. God wanted to break this frame of mind, so he gave them manna each morning for that day, except for the sixth day when they received manna for two days. God blessed his people with the gift of rest, but he knew that he needed to make it a weekly practice, or they would not break their slave mentality. Remembering the Sabbath is the fourth commandment God gave to Moses on Mount Sinai (Exodus 20:8-11), 40 years after he and the Israelites arrived in the desert.

Mark 2:27
Then Jesus said to them, “The Sabbath was made to meet the needs of people, and not people to meet the requirements of the Sabbath.”

There were many rules about the Sabbath in the Old Testament, such as how to properly observe it, what was prohibited on it, and the consequences for breaking it. However, in this verse, Jesus teaches that the Sabbath was not meant for us to be enslaved by all the rules, but rather, to meet our needs. The Sabbath is to show us that God is working even when we are not. As Barb put it, we don’t need to spin our plates as often as we think, because he is taking care of some of them.

Are you ready to receive one of God’s greatest gifts by resting on the Sabbath?

Questions:
Do you observe the spiritual practice of Sabbath? If not, why? If so, what do you do on your Sabbath day?

Like the Israelites who gathered more manna than they could use (Exodus 16:19-36), have you overworked but been unable to reap the benefits because your relationships or health have spoiled?

Next Steps:
The spiritual practice of Sabbath is learning how to stop living in constant motion so you can see where God is moving on your behalf. Pick a day and practice Sabbath using the three Ps.

• Prepare – Prepare by taking care of things before your Sabbath, like grocery shopping, cleaning house, or other things you have decided not to do on your Sabbath day.
• Practice – Practice Sabbath every week, even if the weeks before have not been perfect. After all, it’s not about perfection.
• Pray – Pray to God, and give him glory. This is a day to mindfully honor and worship God and keep your covenants.

Prayer:
Dear heavenly Father, thank you for the gift of Sabbath; may I keep it holy. Thank you for the calmness and spiritual insight that I gain when I stop my hurried lifestyle and focus on you. Guide me as I make preparations for the Sabbath, and give me the discipline to practice it each week. Help me to know that I am blessed when I rest. It’s in Jesus’ name that I pray, amen.

Series Theme Verse:
Ephesians 3:16-17
¹⁶ I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will empower you with inner strength through his Spirit. ¹⁷ Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him. Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong.

This post was written by Jenn Macke, a regular contributor to the LivingItOut Devotional.