A Day Set Apart

Sabbath has become one of the most healing and life-changing spiritual disciplines for me. There is so much circulation about what sabbath is, and how to do it, that it becomes difficult to know where to start. This is especially true for a college student whose schedule seems to always be piling up. But if I have learned anything from sabbath, it is that it is the most productivity, joy, and balance filled weeks start with sabbath. One of the most valuable notes on sabbath that I’ve heard is that it is much more productive and healthy to work from a place of rest rather than resting because of your work. 

So, what is Sabbath? And what does it look like to practice it? As many of us know, the first example of Sabbath is in Genesis 2:2-3, “By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. Then God blessed the seventh day and made it Holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done.”
 
God intended for us to set aside a day to rest from all of our work and devote it to the Lord. To be Holy is to be set apart, and we are called to be Holy people. If we are to trust God in this calling, we should surely follow one of the first spiritual disciples described in the entire Bible. Even the Lord rested. 

Rest and sabbath continue to be described throughout the rest of the Bible, even into the New Testament. Jesus often went to lonely and quiet places to pray, and He says in Matthew, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” God has always and will always seek to have intimacy and communication with us. Spending time with God during our Sabbath allows us to give Him our full, undivided attention with a slow and quiet heart. It is from this place and during these moments that I feel He gives us exactly what our hearts might need. If your heart needs fun, sabbath might look like spending quality time with people who refresh your soul. If your heart needs rest, it might be just sitting on your couch and listening to worship music. It is during sabbath that we allow God to move and stir our hearts in whatever way He sees fit. A book I am reading called Keeping a Quiet Heart by Elisabeth Elliot says this, “Was Jesus indolent? No, never lazy, never sluggish, or slothful, but He knew when to take action and when to leave things up to His father.” At the end of the day, Sabbath is about obeying God’s spiritual command of rest and spending time connected to Him and your own heart. 

If you have never practiced sabbath before, it can feel intimidating to know where to start. One of Wesley’s prayer leaders, Sierra Jarrell, gives some valuable advice about sabbath. She says to plan for it, prepare for it, protect it, and preserve it. Pick one day in your week that you can devote, and plan what you will do that day to connect with God and rest your heart. 

The Father is close and always eager to spend time with us, but this day is especially Holy to give Him. 

Author | Fernanda Lima