“Then He told them, “The Sabbath was made for man and not man for the Sabbath.” Mark 2:27 (HCSB)
Sabbath is for man not the other way around! Today many are responding to the Holy Spirit’s lead to keep a Sabbath. Us included! How it looks is quite unique for everyone who dives into it. The key is that we set aside time that is life giving and God focused! This has been so important and impactful for Shellie & I. Since ministry flows out of our lives, we do not have 8 to 5 jobs. It is more like 24/7! So, we must set boundaries to be sure we rest. Especially since most of our nights are quite spiritually active! Besides trying to get a day off each week where we don’t do ministry (usually very challenging) we have found the weekly Sabbath a healthy way of life.
We don’t do it as a religious restriction but as an opportunity to be together in life-giving ways. Our Sabbath is on Sundays, which is crazy because of all the prayer assignments I have, but literally, it works best for us. I usually don’t do other ministry things on Sundays. We’ll do some relational stuff, but I usually don’t send texts or do any other correspondence on our sabbath. My list of things to do on Monday usually grows on Sunday as things pop up, or come to my mind!
For our Sabbath, after prayer assignments in our city, we’ll usually marinate in one or two online services, then go for a walk and/or do some very light gardening. Since exercising is very life giving to me, I’ll usually have a nice workout. We find it a great day to read and to dream together. We have found this to be a very ‘filling’ day! We usually feel refreshed in spirit and body! And we know that it has helped us keep going through the challenges of this past season!
If you are not already doing it, ask the Lord if He wants you to begin to take a sabbath for Him. Ask Him to give you the grace to pull it off, not as a legalistic obligation, but as a joyful opportunity to press into Him and find refreshment! Thank Him that He designed the sabbath for man, and not man for the Sabbath (Mark 2:27).
