In the non-stop pace of our current techno-culture, can we learn anything from the Sabbath pause? What stop? It seems almost unthinkable that slowing down may help us to catch up. I fear we’re losing the wisdom in the tale of the “Tortoise and the Hare.” While the fable was told and retold long before the technological acceleration of today, I would suggest the truth still applies.

According to the Exodus 20:8-11Exodus 20:8-11
English: King James Version (1611) - KJV
8 Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. ⁹ Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: ¹⁰ But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates: ¹¹ For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.  

WP-Bible plugin appearance of the command, the children of Israel are commanded to “remember” the Sabbath as a replication God’ s rest and rejoicing after He completed the work of creating the world. According to the Genesis story, God looks back over His work and declares, “It is very good!”

He celebrates what He has created. In the Sabbath command, God invites man to join in this celebration of creating. Created in God’s image, humans are also creators. We can’t help but create stories, songs, iPods, computers, jingles, mousetraps, and smoking monkeys. We create both functional things and fun things. Even silly things. If we replicate the pattern, we pause and remember. We look back over our creative work and celebrate. Of course, this assumes that our work is “very good.” If the work is destructive, harmful to humans or the world around us, it might not be “very good.”

So Sabbath speaks to social responsibility as well as civic celebration. We seek to create things and art and even relationships that are “very good.” Then we celebrate them. And oddly, Israel is told to celebrate Sabbath completion long before they ever complete the work of entering the Promised Land. Their celebration anticipates a work that will be “very good.” In the command, they are learning to lean upon the faithfulness of God’s provision and power in the midst of their pursuit.

Thus, Sabbath becomes a mini-celebration in the midst of work, looking backing remembering what we’ve done and looking forward to what we will do. Now just think if we applied Sabbath celebrations to projects and people and even places. We might not feel so stressed in the midst of a difficult season.

I’ve been involved in chaotic software implementations where the project manager was stressed and stressing everyone around them. They could have used the gift of Sabbath wisdom. In the midst of the stress, we may not be able to take a day and party, but we might be able to pause and celebrate each person’s involvement in the project.

No matter how confident the people around you seem, a kind, encouraging word of thanks and celebration is an invaluable gift you can give them. Through our timely words, we may re-energize and refocus a project by simply remembering the work done thus far and anticipating the good work ahead. Then Sabbath becomes a power of re-creation in revitalizing a people in pursuit of a goal.

Instead of waiting for a break, let us bring the word of Sabbath refreshing and encouragement to the people in our lives from family to co-workers to even people who serve us in the stores and various transactions throughout the day. But that’s the beginning of another aspect of Sabbath wisdom that I’ll save for another day.

Popularity: 5% [?]