Exodus 20:9-11 (KJV)
Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: 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: 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.
We have all heard this verse before, it's one of the ten commandments. This one was even set up during creation(see Gen. 2:3). Knowing this we should all be enjoying our Sabbath's each week as God has directed us to do. He is actually telling us to rest, so what is the problem? I have struggled with breaking this commandment my whole adult life. How is it so difficult for me to just rest on Sunday. Well, I believe that the root of my problem is lack of planning during the week. Don't get me wrong I have an extremely busy schedule but I don't value this enough to plan ahead for rest. Until now....
I am going to make a change in my life. One thing I have recently learned is that work was created before the fall of mankind. I had always considered work to be part of the punishment for sin. But this is a false belief. God put Adam in charge of the garden of Eden and he was to tend to it. Now, after sin the ground began to grow weeds and he would have to eat bread by the sweat of his brow. Armed with this new realization that we need to work (it's part of God's perfect will for our lives) I am going to take care of everything considered work on the six days leading up to Sunday.
We could spend hours debating what work is, so let's not go there. Instead I want to challenge you to pray and ask God to show you what work is in your life and then commit this week to getting it all done in six day. I will write a post on Sunday (or Monday) to let you know how it goes. God even instructed them that during the harvest they were to rest on the Sabbath, so no excuses! Just do it! I hope you will leave me a comment and tell me if you are up for this challenge, then come back on Monday and we will share how we did. :) 
Monday, June 2, 2008
Work
Posted by Sonya Lee Thompson at 6:00 AM
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
9 comments:
This is a tough one - as it seems if we don't "work" on Sunday, the work is double on Monday (dishes, etc.) And as "mamas" we have alot of work to do.
But it is so refreshing to have a day off, and we have a God who loves us so much he wants to see us refreshed, not exhausted. I will try your challenge. :-)
Sonya,
Thanks for visiting my blog! I enjoyed this post. This morning, I read 2 Thess. 3. Paul warns them against idleness and urged them to follow his example of hard work. He said, "We gave you this rule: If a man will not work, he shall not eat. We hear that some among you are idle. They are not busy. They are busybodies."
This passage really struck me because I keep trying (unsuccessfully) to find large chunks of non-busy time. Here's Paul pushing the virute of work and condemning idleness. I suppose if we're so busy for six days, that's why it's so important to honor the Sabbath.
This is a tough one to work out in real life.
See you at She Speaks!
Good morning Sonya! Thanks for your comment :) I really enjoyed reading through some of your blog and know I'll be back! Such good reminders and encouragement. It's funny because I know that when I'm focused on Him...there does seem to be enough time to get everything done and then some. I'll let you know on Monday how this week went for me :)
Thanks for visiting my blog site. I do hope we meet at She Speaks-500women!! Wow!
I have been convicted for some time now about "keeping the sabbath holy". A friend said she and her husband enjoy doing yard work on Sundays as they are out in God's creation, soaking Him up. It's not a chore but they see themselves as God's keeper of the land they have been given from Him. I guess its the attitude and heart set you have. I forbid myself from housework and laundry on Sundays...still can't find any joy in this!!
What did people do in the Bible with their Sabbath? They spent time worshiping together and honoring God. We really need to get back to that!!!
Blessings!!
In his Graces~Pamela
OK, I'll take your challenge. I believe this is a tough one for all (or at least most) of us. We get caught up in the "need to do this and that" and forget what we really need to do. So this Sunday....church, relax, play with kids, rest....sounds easy but I think we'll all be surprised that it won't be as easy as it sounds.
Thanks for visiting my blog. I can understand now how you have been such as inspiration to CK.
Hi, Sonya! Thanks for visiting me over at the Wellblog! I have been exploring your site...and have been so blessed! Isn't it amazing how we all are connected by this God thing??? I am so looking forward to SheSpeaks, and the opportunity to see some of these fabulous ladies face-to-face!
Warmly,
Laura
I'm on it! Enjoyed my last Sunday rest. Looking forward to the next.
Be blessed in all your doing this week.
peace~elaine
I'm midweek already and a little late to try to get it all done this week, but I'll try for sure next week. I've actually been doing pretty well in the past few years with resting on the Sabbath, but that is more because I do it regardless of whether or not the work is all done instead of actually trying to get everything done so I can rest "peacefully" on the Sabbath.
I'm glad you brought out the point that they were instructed to do this even during the harvest. I don't think I've ever really thought about that before, but it's so true that even during the busiest of times we need to take a day to rest. And we can still get it all done in six days! Whew! Makes me tired just thinking about it!
I like this challenge. Thanks1
This is something I have really struggled with myself. What a challenge! Thanks for stopping by my blog. I look forward to meeting you!
Post a Comment