The Daily Office and Sabbath

Our church study group is currently reading a book by Peter and Geri Scazzero called Emotionally Healthy Spirituality. The chapter we went over this time was called Discover the Rhythms of the Daily Office and Sabbath. Even though I'm agnostic, I can appreciate this idea in living one's life. In fact, in a way, I do practice the Sabbath.

The Sabbath is a 24-hour period of rest once a week. It doesn't necessarily have to be on a Sunday. Some people practice it on a Saturday, or whenever it suits them. The idea is to:

Stop - Sabbath is first and foremost a day of “stopping”. “To stop” is built into the literal meaning of the Hebrew word Sabbath.

Rest - Once we stop, the Sabbath calls us to rest. God rested after his work. We are to do the same - every seventh day (Genesis 2:1-4). We are to do whatever delights and replenishes us.

Delight - A third component to biblical Sabbath revolves around delighting in what we have been given. God, after finishing his work of creation, proclaimed that “it was very good” (Genesis 1:31). God delighted over his creation. The Hebrew phrase communicates a sense of joy, completion, wonder and play.

And Contemplate - Pondering the love of God remains the central focus of our Sabbaths. Sabbath has included worship with God’s people where we feast on his presence, the reading and study of Scripture and silence.

Many people, nowadays, are harried, running around like chickens with their heads cut off. They aren't living life, but doing life. It's about accomplishing tasks and little more. I think it's really important to take a step back and exhale regularly. So, while my point of view is a secular one and the book promotes a religious one, we do agree on the principle of a day of rest.

My Fridays are my Sabbath. I choose to take an extra day off during the week just for me. I can read, watch TV, go on social media, play Sudoku, go for a walk or not do anything at all. It's really great. To me, TGIF, really means Thank Goodness It's Friday. Not because the weekend is coming up, but my weekend has already started.