“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!’” (Mark 2:27 NLT) So we must “remember to observe the Sabbath day by
keeping it holy.” (Exodus 20:8)
How did I miss this? Why have I failed to honor the Sabbath? Why does our culture, even our Christian culture, not value the Sabbath?
I grew up knowing that I had to work, and somewhere along the way, I learned that work often defined who I was in the eyes of others. In some ways, my work also defined my significance to myself. Early in life, I was known as a good worker, and through the years I developed the respect of others through my reliable work ethic. It felt good to be noticed and to feel important. The feeling of “accomplishment” can become addictive, and the pride that comes from accomplishing things becomes to the soul like an adrenaline rush to the body. Attached to this need for accomplishment and its accompanying approval is a pressure that never stops, based on the motto “Enough is never enough.”
Unfortunately, our Western American culture promotes a desperate pursuit of the next big “title and raise” corporate reward. It demands that our 12-year-olds play club basketball all year long or they won’t make the school team. Our schools push academics at the sacrifice of fun and social life. And even our churches have so many committees and programs that some people are at church more than they are at home. Who is practicing the Sabbath? Where is it even being talked about?
When Christians do talk about Sabbath, it is most often spoken of as practicing a ritual to fulfill a duty, as presented in Moses’ Ten Commandments. But in Mark 2, Jesus gives us a new idea to ponder. The Sabbath is a gift to us, and it was set up for us in order to find rest and enjoyment. Sabbath is seen by Christ as a place to cease striving and to bask in the beauty of His Presence. It calls us into peaceful rest in the midst of tumultuous times, for Sabbath is not dependent on circumstances. It is instead a mainstay in which we can enjoy all that God has created, as well as all that our own work has created.
Not only is the failure to practice Sabbath disobeying God, but it is also affecting our mental health and our relationships with others. The ongoing “push-push” approach to life is creating an anxiety-driven pressure to succeed. Relationships then become an afterthought instead of an eagerly cultivated blessing. During a recent conversation with a good friend, I came to realize that my refusal to observe the Sabbath was often prideful and fearful. The month before our conversation my busy work routine had been totally interrupted by being sick for the entire month. As I described that month to my friend, she asked if I had been able to pay attention to my body – and what was it saying? I chuckled and said I was getting better at that, but I quickly justified myself: I needed to work and keep going. In other words, I was defensive and still committed to resuming my “work addiction” attitude.
I left our conversation troubled and curious, because the deeper part of me wants to please our Lord. I really do want to rest in Him as I willingly practice Sabbath, trusting that He will do the interior work of making me holy as I surrender my own frantic efforts to produce holiness in myself. For those self-sufficient efforts are based on the false assumption that I must strive to earn something which I ultimately cannot earn – God’s unconditional love. The pressure of living according to that lie accrues over time, and it always negatively impacts the quality of my relationships with others. To follow the all-American pace of life or to keep up with the Jones leaves us feeling exhausted and depleted.
God accomplished His creation work in six day, and then He looked around to see all He had made, and He called it “very good” – He enjoyed what He had done! But on the seventh day God rested. He ceased from His work of creating our universe. Not only did He rest on that day, but He blessed it and declared it holy. (Genesis 1 and 2)
If God Himself declares the Sabbath to be holy, must I not do the same if I am His follower? Lord, lead me to you as I practice Sabbath, learning to rest in and to worship the One I say I love the most.
- Sonya Reeder - Executive Director of Hope Road