Cycling

“A senior leader in an investment bank called to tell me she was leaving her job. She realized she wouldn't make much money in the next few years and didn't want to miss her children growing up. Did you get that? She was willing to miss her children growing up if the money was good enough.” This quote by Steve Bregman shared this on CNN.com recently shows a lot of what we as a society think about life. Yet these, and other choices, are the very things that are robbing us of life with worry. We have become so stressed and strained that worship and resting in God is a distant memory – we have seen the glitter of what we thought was gold and yet it turned out to be fool’s gold.

While we may not be giving up our children’s childhood, we often do give up the peace and presence of God. We do so by chasing forever the next dollar, gadget, fashion, or whatever it is that strikes our newest fancy. Over the next few weeks, I will be sharing about the process God uses to ensure prosperity that endures and transforms.

The first, is to partake in a day of Sabbath. This is a day of Worship and rest. Within the Jewish faith and some Christian traditions this is a particular day of the week – specifically Saturday (Seventh Day Sabbath). Historically, most Christians used to use Sunday (First Day Sabbath) as a day of Worship, rest and preparation. This concept transcends these faiths to Buddhism, Islam, Wicca, and others.

The whole point of each of these Sabbaths is to ensure that we acknowledge God’s ownership and creation of the world. They also are days to acknowledge the fact that we need a day of worship and rest to prepare for the world in which we live. We are created to work, but this day was created by God to ensure that we stopped the rat race of constant and frantic activity. The goal of the day is Worship, but also giving everyone a way and time where there are no rivalries and anxieties to keep our mind working, and taxed.

Our current rat race has led to destruction in confidence, care, and even compassion. It is time that we take a day and withdraw from the ongoing cares of the world so that we can redirect our efforts in ways that builds a sense of the sacred in everything we do. Ways of viewing the world in life affirming and powerful ways. It is time to embrace this discipline in our lives so that we can find rest and peace rather than conflict, stress and anxiety as we live currently.

This week, embrace a day of Sabbath. One you celebrate God in community and one that you do not fill with a bunch of other activities. Frantic entertainment is as unhealthy as frantic work. Sabbath can bring balance and teach us how it to make life livable and productive.