Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. Six days you shall labour and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your male or female servant, nor your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns. For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.
Exodus 20:8-11 [NIV]
The sun is hanging low over the garden, the hollyhocks wave in the breeze and the soft sooty smell of barbecue coals drift across the garden. The table is laid with salad, crusty loaf and a bottle of wine stands open and ready….
How good it is to be away from daily life, work and responsibilities and to enjoy enforced idleness. It is good to spent time being with the family, talking about inconsequential things, reading that pile of books that has been building up, sketching... whatever it is that relaxes us. Most of us don’t realise how hard we work until we stop for that precious week or two in the summer.
God built in the idea of rest into our week, but we are not very good at observing it – most of us are as busy at the weekend as during the week, just with different things.
Thank you God for giving us days of rest to renew us and refresh us for the days of work. Help us to use this gift wisely. Amen.
Mairi Mowbray
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