Summer should be a time to renew and refresh, but seldom do we slow down from our fast-paced life.
“Right now we have a kind of time poverty in our lives; everybody would like to have an extra day in the week.”
Dr. Matthew Sleeth believes that the answer isn’t to do more, but do less by prioritizing the Sabbath. When we experience God’s design for rest we are allowing Him to re-prioritize our lives.
“Instead of our priorities, setting one day aside for the Lord gets all the others in perspective.”
He points us towards the biblical comparison found in Matthew 10:39.
“He’s saying choose the big thing here, if you want your life you’re going to lose it, if you give it up you’re going to get it. God’s ways are counter-intuitive to humans. I found that sometimes the best thing to do is just do them and watch what happens.”
Taking a Sabbath rest requires intentionality and practice.
“It’s a skill that’s learned for people who are totally overwhelmed by the idea of 24 hours of rest.”
Some people struggle with the thought of spending a full day without a schedule, work and entertainment. Dr. Sleeth suggests that we start with smaller chunks of time.
“I tell them now to start with 4 hours. Say every Sunday, from 8-noon, or pick some time for 4 hours that is set aside and begin practicing with that. Ask the Lord to bless it and ask the Lord to increase it for you.”
Dr. Sleeth shares a testimony from his website,
“There’s one family that has said, ‘The first three weeks we tried, it was awful.’ They said, ‘we thought we were going to have flying unicorns and leprechauns and it was going to be great.’”
“But then they say, ‘six months into it it’s a totally different thing.’ Now they know how to stop; now they’re going and ministering out of fullness, not out of running on fumes.”
Keeping Sabbath Day will not only allow us to slow down from our fast-paced lives, but honors God’s design for rest.
Dr. Matthew Sleeth, MD, a former emergency room physician and chief of the hospital medical staff, resigned from his position to teach, preach, and write about the biblical call to be good stewards of God’s creation. He is the executive director of Blessed Earth and the author of several books and church curricula.
Honoring the Sabbath
