Holy Rest (The Practice of Sabbath)

 

“Work can be done for six days, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of special rest, a holy occasion. You must not do any work on it; wherever you live, it is a Sabbath to the LORD.” (Leviticus 23:3, CEB)

 

I go among trees and sit still.

All my stirring becomes quiet

Around me like circles on the water.

My tasks lie in their places

where I left them, asleep like cattle.

(Wendell Berry, from A Timbered Choir:  The Sabbath Poems, "I")

Every Sunday, the writer and poet Wendell Berry honors the Sabbath by walking in the woods to simply be in the sometimes gentle and sometimes wild presence of God.  Sitting in the shade of a tree or beside a flowing river he writes a “Sabbath” poem to commemorate what he is learning of himself, the world, and God through this sacred stillness, this holy time of rest.

I love the intentionality and priority that Wendell Berry gives to Sabbath.  He reminds me that Sabbath is not something to do if time is left over, for I too easily fill empty space on the calendar with busy work, tasks and errands.  Rather, it is priority.  It is something that I must choose.  It is the thing I must do if I am to be whole, at peace, living in connection with God.    

Sabbath comes from the Hebrew word Shabbat, which means “to cease”.  It refers back to the first creation story in Genesis and God choosing to rest on the seventh day, when the work of the first six days is completed.  Of all the things created in the first six days (light, animals, plants, people), this rest is the first thing that God calls quadosh, or “holy”.  

Later, the Hebrew people are instructed to practice Sabbath as a way to renew their own souls, to give laborers and the earth a needed rest, and to honor God.  It was the practice of Sabbath that would keep people in balance with themselves, others, creation, and God.  That is why it is one of the ten commandments, “Keep the Sabbath day and treat it as holy…”  (Deuteronomy 5:12-15)

 

Sabbath, then and now, is a time for ceasing from our work, productivity, busyness, buying and selling.  It is not a time to catch up on “to-do” lists.  No, Sabbath is a time for intentional rest and stillness in the presence of God, a way to reconnect with the Creator of the Universe.  

In my own spiritual journey, I am feeling an increasing need to re-discover (or maybe for the first time truly discover) the beauty of Sabbath.  As we start to come through a year of global pandemic and life turns back towards pre-COVID patterns, I don’t just want to go back to the busyness and the hectic pace of life.  I want to live in a way that is deep and full, healthy and whole in body, mind and spirit.  I want to live well, with myself, with God, with my neighbors and all of creation.    I want to do good meaningful work, but I also want to slow down enough to watch a bee land on a flower, to be present to an evening sunset, to pray in quiet and stillness, or to have a meaningful conversation with a loved one.  

This is why I have decided to use this summer, these days and weeks before the busyness of the fall begins, to better understand the practice of Sabbath and how I can make it a more intentional part of my life.  I want to invite you along for the journey.  The summer blog series will be about some aspect of living a life in which Sabbath is a priority.  I will share practices, ideas, and resources that I stumble across.  

I have a sense that practicing Sabbath is a key to discovering a meaningful and abundant life in God.  Let’s see where God leads us on this journey together.  

Practices:

 

1.      Select an intentional time of Sabbath.  Maybe it is a full day (Saturday or Sunday), maybe it is a half a day, or maybe even two hours.  Just find some time that you can set aside intentionally and regularly to stop doing, to just rest in the presence of God.  Don’t just say I will do it if there is time left over.  There seldom is.  Select your Sabbath time and then make everything else work around that.

 

2.     Use a prayer to begin and end your sabbath time.  Here is a suggestion:

 

BEFORE:  God of Sabbath rest, I/we come to you now to find wholeness, healing, restoration and renewal.  I/we enter this Sabbath as a way to honor and worship You.  I/we come as I/we am/are, no pretenses or illusions.  I/We set aside tasks and duties, busyness and striving, in order to pick them up again later in ways that give greater glory to you.  God of the Sabbath, grant me/us your peace as I/we now begin this time of Sabbath rest.  Amen.

AFTER:  God of peace.  Thank you for all of the ways that you have met me/us in this Sabbath peace.  I/We trust in the slowness of your work.  Do your work on your terms and in your good time.  This has been holy time.  Thank you.  Now send me/us back to work and service so as to give greater honor and glory to you.  Amen.

 

Resources:  Here are some books I am reading this summer about Sabbath and I invite you to join me in reading some or all:

1.     Wendell Berry, A Timbered Choir:  Sabbath Poems 1979-1997.

2.     Wayne Muller, Sabbath:  Finding Rest, Renewal, and Delight in our Busy Lives.

3.     Marva Dawn, Keeping the Sabbath Wholly:  Ceasing, Resting, Embracing, Feasting.

4.     J. Dana Trent, For Sabbath’s Sake:  Embracing Your Need for Rest, Worship and Community.

5.     Lauren F. Winner, Mudhouse Sabbath:  An Invitation to a Life of Spiritual Discipline.

6.     Jenny Odell, How to Do Nothing:  Resisting the Attention Economy.

7.     Celeste Headlee, Do Nothing:  How to Break Away from Overworking, Overdoing, and Underliving.