A Place at the Table - 32 - Sabbath
A Place at the Table - 32 - Sabbath
God, we are so thankful that at the end of a hard week’s work, You call us to rest with You. May the blessing of the Sabbath be present in our daily decisions. May we build our lives around this solid foundation of presence with You. Help us to notice when we are out of rest. Give us the courage to open up a space in our daily and weekly routines to renew our covenant love with You. Fortify us in these times together, Father, to reenter the world as mindful citizens of Your kingdom. Amen.
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What wonderful timing for today’s devotion. I read it a bit later than normal as I am off to a few days with my pastors group that I meet with annually. For most of my time in ministry, I have gathered with this group of guys to connect, to play, to pray, to listen, to share, to be brothers in Christ together. While our days are full when we get together, they are ultimately times of rest and sabbath. They are times to let the sun go down in our lives for a few days and refocus on the callings that each of us have in our lives - to God, to our families, to ourselves, to the groups we serve, to the world.
I love how in the Jewish tradition, sabbath doesn’t begin with the rising of the sun, but with the setting of the sun into the next day. It comes at the end of a day of work and moves into the next day. So, as the sun was setting tonight, I was reminded of how this period is a time to rest in order to be able to do and be what God desires me to be.
As I type this, I recognize that this is not the experience of many - to be able to have times like these. We are created to work, but we are also created to rest. If you have a role where you can provide that rest, that sabbath, to others, do so. Give others the space in their lives to slow down, if even only for a day. Slow down. Rest. Sabbath. Just as God called us to follow the example set in the creation, so we can set the example and provide the space for others.