Redeeming Rest 5. Sabbath as Joy
Redeeming Rest: Embracing the Gift of Sabbath
“Redeeming Rest 5: Sabbath Joy; Delight in God’s Presence”
Isaiah 58:13-14 (New Revised Standard Version)
If you refrain from trampling the sabbath, from pursuing your own interests on my holy day; if you call the sabbath a delight and the holy day of the Lord honorable; if you honor it, not going your own ways, serving your own interests, or pursuing your own affairs; then you shall take delight in the Lord, and I will make you ride upon the heights of the earth; I will feed you with the heritage of your ancestor Jacob,for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.
The Sabbath is not just a commandment to rest; it is an invitation to delight—a call to experience the fullness of life that God offers.
When we embrace the Sabbath, we embrace the God who says, “You are more than what you produce. You are beloved.”
The Sabbath is God’s invitation to stop the spinning wheels of our lives and to allow ourselves to be molded and shaped by God’s loving hands.
Delight is more than just a moment of happiness; it is a deep-seated joy that permeates our entire being.
To delight is to take profound joy, to find deep satisfaction, and to savor each moment.
The Sabbath is not just about abstaining from work—it’s about finding joy in God’s presence. It’s not about what we stop doing; it’s about what we start doing.
To delight in God is to taste a joy that transcends all circumstances—a joy that is anchored in God’s unchanging love.
Isaiah challenges us to honor the Sabbath by not going our own way or speaking idle words.
This is a call to reorder our lives around what truly matters, to lay down our busyness and pick up God’s peace.
Sabbath is a time to let go of what we think we need and to receive what God knows we need.
Sabbath joy has the power to transform our weariness into worship and our restlessness into rest.
Sabbath joy is a joy that heals, a joy that restores, and a joy that empowers us to live out our calling with renewed vigor and passion.
It is a joy that reminds us that, in all things, God is with us—leading us, guiding us, and sustaining us.