A little rest and relaxation

I’ve finished reading through Leviticus, and though most find it pedantic, I am intrigued by the minutia of ways to properly approach God. One of the main points that is stressed revolves around properly balancing work and worship. That is one reason God instituted the Sabbath day: “There are six days when you may work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of rest, a day of sacred assembly. You are not to do any work; wherever you live, it is a Sabbath to the LORD” (Lev. 23:3). Yahweh required that one day be set aside as an act of worship to Him. But more than that, it was a day of refreshment for the people.

Even the entertainment industry realizes the necessity of such a provision. I just saw a great commercial today. It features a sophisticated man sitting in a chair. All the walls behind him have Rx on the, and he says:

“The pharmaceutical industry applauds this nation’s obsession with career advancement. Thanks to your inability to balance life with work, sales are through the roof. Indeed 45% of Americans don’t use all their vacation time—a proven cause of stress induced illness and depression. So stay the course. As long as you are committed to all work and no play we’ll provide happiness in the form of a pill.”

The commercial ends with cool shots of roller coasters and families having fun, and the statement: “Logon to UniversalOrlando.com.”

From Leviticus and the Universal commercial, I am reminded of a few things. God has set up the system so that we do not spend out entire lives selfishly working. When we do we become ineffective. More than that, God does not receive the proper attention that He deserves. We try to make up for our overly stressed lives with drugs to give us more energy. Or perhaps worse, we substitute giving God our best with giving him the best we can spare.

But the Sabbath day was meant to be a rest from the trials of life so that the Israelites could focus on God’s faithfulness to them. It was meant as a day of refreshment—physically and spiritually. And though, as Christians, we do not have a Sabbath day, and I don’t equate church with the Sabbath, if we do not have these times dedicated to God for Him to refresh us, we will end up giving Him a contrived substitute. So let us remember to keep the Sabbath, and keep our relationship with God fresh.