You can tell a lot about a person by looking at two things: their bank account and their calendar…
The reason is, it reveals their priorities.
Now about your calendar (and mine, too, for that matter), do you have moments blocked out for rest? And I don’t just mean sleep. Moments where you read, or spend time with family, or go on a walk… Moments where you are not required to be productive. You’re just required to BE.
Most of us don’t prioritize our rest, AND IT SHOWS. We are overworked and stressed out.
Hear me: Burnout is not caused by over-working, it’s caused by under-resting.
And if you need further proof: even God rested.
“By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work.” -Genesis 2:2 (italics mine).
I mean, if GOD Himself rested from ALL His work, we probably should too.
And, of course, in the creation account, man was created on the 6th day, and our very first day on earth was Sabbath…a day of rest.
Did you know that the daily Jewish calendar begins at sundown, not sunrise? The first item on their calendar: REST.
Observing the Sabbath reinforces 3 truths:
Sabbath is not a ‘reward’ for hard work. Be careful about the toxic thinking that “I only deserve a Sabbath once I’ve worked to exhaustion.” Sabbath is God’s gift to mankind, and you can’t earn a gift. Be present in the moment, simply enjoying God’s presence.
Sabbath helps us resist the idol of productivity. We don’t rest because it makes us more productive. We rest because it reminds us that we are more than what we produce.
Sabbath reminds us that we are not God. Everything does not depend on us. In the end, our work will remain incomplete. All things are held together in Christ, not in our productivity.
I hope this encourages you to add “REST” to your calendar. And in those moments, I pray you experience a deep encounter with the living God who is crazy about YOU, not what you produce.
I’ll leave you with a wonderful quote from Pastor Rich Villodas, “Sabbath is one of the clearest signs of the gospel of grace. You intentionally accomplish nothing and God still loves you.”