There Is No Excuse Not to Rest

Jan 8, 2015 There Is No Excuse Not to Rest by Rick Warren “Six days you shall labor, but on the seventh day you shall rest; even during the plowing season and harvest you must rest.” Exodus 34:21 (NIV)   The Bible is filled with instructions about rest and recreation and relaxation. In fact it’s so important that God put it in the Ten Commandments — right up there with “Don’t commit adultery” and “Don’t murder.” He says every seventh day, you have to take a day off. That’s how important a Sabbath is in your life. Jesus said in Mark 2:27, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath” (NIV). In other words, God created this idea of you taking a day off every seven days for rest, recreation, worship, and restoration. It’s his idea, and it’s for your own benefit so you don’t burn out. Yet in our modern society, people aren’t doing that. Even on their day off they’re working. And even those who go to a church service go home afterward and go right back to work, trying to get all the stuff done that they didn’t get accomplished during their work week. That’s not a Sabbath! This is what it means to have a Sabbath: “Six days you shall labor, but on the seventh day you shall rest; even during the plowing season and harvest you must rest” (Exodus 34:21). Even in your busiest season, there is no excuse not to rest. You may be a tax accountant, but you still have to take a day off in April. You may work in retail, but you still have to take a day off during the Christmas season. Even a farmer must take a day off in harvest or planting season. What are you supposed to do on your Sabbath? Rest your body. Sometimes the most spiritual thing you can do is take a nap. Refocus your spirit. That means you worship. Recharge your emotions. That’s something that restores and reenergizes you, like a hobby or a sport. It doesn’t really matter which day is your Sabbath. It does matter that you are obedient. You may not rest when your spouse tells you to or even when your boss tells you to take a break. But you must rest because God commands it and so you can give him your best. Talk It Over What kind of difference does it make in your day when you get a full night’s rest compared to when you only get a few hours of sleep? What are the activities or responsibilities that keep you from resting well? How do you need to change the way you do your Sabbath so that you are honoring God with your rest? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SFYAH-Z3_po

Recovering What Has Been Lost TODAY’S SCRIPTURE “I will repay you for the years the locusts have eaten.” (Joel 2:25, NIV) TODAY’S WORD from Joel and Victoria You can break free of the hurt, the pain, and the mistakes of the past, and recover the years, the joy and the blessings that have been stolen from you. God wants to restore these things to you — not just the way they were before — but twice as much so that you are far better off than when you began. No matter where you are today, or what happened to you yesterday, God wants to give you a new future filled with joy, fulfillment and abundance, a forgotten past and a fresh future! No matter where you are today, or what happened to you yesterday, God wants to give you a new start and a future that is better than anything you could ask for or even imagine. A PRAYER FOR TODAY God, give me the strength to break free from anything in my past that is holding me back. Thank you for being the God of new beginnings. In Jesus’ Name. Amen