Monday, May 9, 2016

Remember the Sabbath - Part 2

Monday, May 9, 2016

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“Remember to observe the Sabbath day by keeping it holy.  You have six days each week for your ordinary work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath day of rest dedicated to the Lord your God. Exodus 20:8(NLT)
How did we ever get so stressed-out?
The answer to this question is the sum and substance of the message of these Ten Commands Moses brought down from the mountain.  They contain two main precepts God wants us to have:
A right view (understanding) of God
A right heart (willingness) towards God
The reason so many people suffer stressful burnout symptoms, and worse, is an unhealthy view of God and a wrong heart, or willingness towards Him.  We run after that which is shiny and feels good; worse, we ignore what God has told us. 
What about your Sabbath-keeping?  Here is a principle and corollary from the Ten Words about keeping the Sabbath:
PRINCIPLE
Rest is part of a balanced, happy life, in which we find renewal of body, mind and soul. 
COROLLARY
Using the Sabbath properly will keep life's energies and priorities in balance. 
Work will be more productive; leisure more pleasurable; worship more meaningful.
There are two keys to the importance of the Sabbath:

Understand the Sabbath

The Shabbat, or Sabbath, means day of rest.  God created in six days, He ceased from labor on the seventh.  He wasn't tired; He was telling us something.  The principle is pars pro toto (the part may stand for the whole).  Just as we give a tenth of our income in recognition of God's ownership of everything, we also recognize He is the giver of time.  Spiritually speaking, the Sabbath belongs to the Lord.
But the seventh day is the Sabbath of the LORD thy God.  Exodus 20.10
But it goes farther than a religious reason.  Jesus said that ...the Sabbath was made for man...  He understood God's command; we need the day of rest, and that's why God gave it.  It is not so much a command as a gift!

For You Today

Rest is a universal human need.  It is necessary for restoring body, mind and soul. 
Physiologically, your body uses more energy and oxygen in one day's labor than one night's rest can restore.  That means, by the end of six days, you are ready for catch-up in the energy department. 
Amen?
You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road today…have a blessed day!


[1] Title Image:   By Nevit Dilmen [CC0], via Wikimedia Commons

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