A day of rest

Of all the laws in the Bible, I find it most remarkable that everyone has basically tossed the commandment to honor the sabath.

This has bothered me before, and I've dug around on the internet which basically led me to a few sites that said its ok not to rest anymore cause Jesus worked on the sabath. Well, yes he did, but I think he--more than anyone else--was in tune with the spirit of the law and knew that obeying the spirit was more important than obeying the letter of the law.

With the new job, the new kid, and summertime projects (when the weather is good); my life had been especially full of too much actiivity. I'd just finish one thing when there were two more things to look at. Moving boxes, digging ditches, nailing floors, carting the kids around, cutting firewood, leveling the driveway--it was too much. And when I got a chance to think (which wasn't very often), I realized that God wasn't getting much time and things were stressed out.

I understand that Jesus healed on the Sabbath, and as he told the rulers, "If something needs doing, then do it." But I began to wonder what the spirit of the commandment was. Maybe it was to set aside time to clear one's head, to step away from the hussle and bussle. To avoid being too busy. And its not just an issue of burn-out. If you're doing what you love, then you can go non-stop for quite a long time (well maybe with a nap or two). I think it comes back to the decision between selfishness and thinking of God. Filling up one's schedule is focusing too much on ourselves and not opening ourselves up to what's going on around us. So I decided to plan a day of rest and see what happened.

Ok, so it wasn't quite that relaxing. Actually it was just a day without projects and without going anywhere. The kids were still running around at a 100 mph and little Oscar still needed toting around in the sling when he wasn't getting fed. But it was a slower paced day then normal, and I felt more relaxed at the end. Even the kids were able to occupy themselves, playing for bits and pieces of the afternoon. Overall I think things went well. We even had a friend stop by unexpected to drop off a water heater.

So maybe there is something to this day of rest thing. Its not easy to do when there are so many things waiting to be done. But like tithing, if you spend your time wisely, then God will give you enough time to get the things done that need to be done. And maybe some of those other things didn't really need doing. Something to think about ... while I take a nap.