SABBATH: Goodbook 03-26-12

Goodbook messages arrive every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday with a Scripture reading and ideas for how to apply the reading in our lives. We are reading through the book of Acts. For additional Scripture reading, you can follow the Advanced Track.

Reading: Acts 16:13
(Advanced Track: Psalm 20, 50, 53, 60, 75; 2 Sam 10; 2 Chron 19)

¹³ On the Sabbath we went outside the city gate to the river, where we expected to find a place of prayer. We sat down and began to speak to the women who had gathered there.

Application:

This past Wednesday I preached a sermon about the Sabbath.  When God created the world, God established a rhythm for life - work six days, rest the seventh.  God felt this rhythm was so important that God included it as one of the Ten Commandments, right along with "Don't murder."  In Exodus 20:8-10a God instructed, "Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. Six days you shall labor 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."

I've learned that all of God's commands are blessings if we follow them.  This is true of the Sabbath.  When we honor God's rhythm for life and have a day of rest to the Lord, it blesses our lives.  In the message I listed 5 ways the Sabbath can bless our lives.  It's a gift that enhances our freedom, rest, trust, transformation, and vision.  If you'd like a copy of this message, let me know and I will send it to you.

The key is not to get legalistic about what day is the Sabbath or what we cannot do.  Rather, it is more helpful to carve out times of rest and find activities that help us experience the blessings of Sabbath.  On my sermon notes, I provided some different ideas.

In our reading today, we hear about Paul keeping the Sabbath.  As busy and active as the Apostle Paul was, he kept the Sabbath.  However, he did not always observe the Sabbath day in the same way.  Here we find Paul going to a place of prayer and engaging in spiritual conversations.  Prayer and spiritual conversations are both wonderful ways to connect with God and experience the blessings of Sabbath.

1) If you don't already have one, find a place of prayer.  This should be a place away from the hustle and bustle of life where you can relax, reflect, and reconnect with God.  Visit this place daily if you can, or at least once a week.

2) Engage in some spiritual conversations with others.  Explore topics of faith with people who are close to God, as well as with people who are not.  Talk about what you are learning or about what you've experienced God doing.

Comment with your thoughts, questions, and ideas about how to apply this…