Episode 47: Fighting for Joy with Rhythms of Rest

“Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor, and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God….for in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.” Exodus 20:8-11

What are your thoughts as you read these verses? Have you learned to integrate a day of rest into the rhythm of your week? Even though this is one of the Ten Commandments, what if you began to also think of this Sabbath day as a GIFT…a gracious gift that God has given to us. More than a “day off”. Something He knew we would desperately need. Something that is designed to help us thrive! Something that points us to HIM! Something to sustain us in this broken world.

Sabbath = “to stop”; “to cease”. Listen in as Eric and I talk about the ways this weekly practice has helped our family. Helped us as individuals. Helped us to delight in the Lord. To be still. To quiet our souls. To rest from work. And the “work under the work” (to quote Eric, who quotes Pastor Tim Keller). To remember that He is better. Better than the hustle and bustle of life. To remember that He is enough.

A “rhythm of rest” has been transformative for us and we believe that it can seriously change your life as well! Practicing a day, or at least part of a day, of Sabbath rest, changes not only that 1 day of the week, but the other 6 days as well!! We hope this episode gives you some things to think about and that it further helps you, as Psalm 37 says, to delight yourself in the Lord. There is much delight to be found in our good God, and taking some time every week to slow down, quiet yourself, and focus on that could be what you are missing in your fight for joy.

*The Fighting for Joy Podcast is sponsored by Faithful Counseling, an online Christian counseling service that pairs you with a professional licensed therapist who will combine Biblical wisdom with their clinical expertise in mental health to help you address your unique situation. As a Fighting for Joy listener, you can receive 10% off at: faithfulcounseling.com/fightingforjoy. Quality counseling is a worthy investment and can be such a powerful tool in the fight for joy!