Take Some Time Off

A day off might be just the thing you need in order to cope with a busy life, says Joseph Maticic.

Time! If only I had more time! In our age of efficiency and technical assistance, we’re still as busy as ever. We’re living increasingly crowded lives, rushing from one appointment or deadline to another. It’s an obvious irony, that as new technology saves time, we still don’t have enough. Despite sophisticated conveniences such as computers, time-saving email and high-speed travel, our free time seems to have evaporated.

An alarming trend is that more Australians are working longer hours. This is documented in studies done by social researchers like Ernst Healy of Melbourne’s Monash University, and Hugh Mackay. They’ve discovered that most of these longer work hours are in overtime. For so many, life is too busy. And it takes its toll in stress-related burnout and illnesses—physical and mental—and loss of family time.

But given our fast-paced, demanding world, how do we slow down, stop and rest? Is there a way to having “more time”?

Actually, yes, there is, and it’s within everybody’s reach. It’s an ancient cure to an age-old disease, and it’s called the Sabbath—a day of rest. It’s almost a forgotten concept, yet it’s designed for humankind by the One who made us: God. He knew people would need rest, even before sin entered the world and life became harder.
“God had finished the work he had been doing, so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. And God blessed the seventh day and made it holy because on it he rested from all the work of creating” (Genesis 2:1-3). In resting on the seventh day—the Sabbath—God set an example for the humans He’d created. It was His intention that we take a day off from our work each week. The word “Sabbath” (Shabbat in Hebrew) means “rest.” That’s all.

There’s wisdom here: We need one day each week in which work comes to a halt. We need one 24-hour period in which we put aside work and its cares, busy schedules and pressures, and ponder deeper more meaningful aspects of life. We all need to stop sometime.

In fact, God considered this to be so important to our wellbeing, He made it a command. It is the fourth of the Ten Commandments and, interestingly, it begins with the word remember—the only commandment to do so, for, it seems, we may be prone to forget it.

Here’s the command: “Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy. Six days you shall labour and do all your work but the seventh day is the Sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work. . . . For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy” (Exodus 20:8-11).

Here is the answer to the hectic pace of the 21st century. The way to find more time is, paradoxically, to lose some. Even without its spiritual overtones and connotations, it’s a wonderful concept, and many practice it without the aspect of devotion. So before you disregard the concept, take a closer look at the genius of the Sabbath and see how it “gives” time.

First, it gives us actual time to stop and rest. Six days are for you to work, but the seventh is Sabbath (rest) from work. Experts are just now acknowledging the concept of total timeout as an antidote to stress and pressure. British author Bryan Appleyard advocates that we need to take a regular day off away from our computers, television and telephone. Medical research suggests that if we don’t stop, we eventually crash.

But there’s more to the Sabbath than merely time for a break. It is also a time to reflect. That’s the spiritual aspect. The Sabbath is different to the other days because God blessed it, because He’s there, and that makes it a holy day as well.
The Bible says that He “rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.” (Exodus 20:10, 11). Through the prophet Ezekiel (20:20) God tells us, “Keep my Sabbaths holy that they may be a sign between us.”

The Sabbath is actually an answer to such big questions of life as Where have I come from? and Why am I here? To the first, it declares that “I have been made by a loving Creator God.” To the second, it says, “I am here to get to know Him better and here’s some regular time I’ll spend with Him.”

Imagine what our world would be like if everyone kept the Sabbath. Someone once said that had all humans kept the Sabbath as it should be kept, we’d have a world without war or crime.

The Sabbath is God’s answer to the hectic pace of our times. It frees our minds from life’s pressing burdens; it invites us into a relationship with God; and it gives time to spend relaxing with family and friends. It is a weekly reminder that there’s more to life than work.

It’s a shame, then, that so many of us have forgotten about or ignored this gift. This happens for a number reasons. for example, some people say it simply doesn’t matter which day we keep as a Sabbath as long as we keep one. But the problem with this is that God specified a day—He “blessed the seventh day” (Genesis 2:3). The reason for this, according to Exodus 20, is that the Sabbath is the anniversary of the day God rested after finishing His creation. Celebrating an anniversary or birthday on the wrong day is just not the same.

Others object to the Sabbath on the grounds that it is superseded by the arrival of Jesus. But notice that “on the Sabbath day he went into the synagogue, as was his custom” (Luke 4:16). Jesus made a habit of keeping the Sabbath.

A Jewish custom, yes, but notice that He didn’t keep it in the same way the Jewish leaders did. He opposed their legalistic attitudes toward it, instead using it as a day of healing and mercy, in restoring humankind.

He kept it. In the midst of His regular work He took time off every Saturday for rest. Despite His stressful, busy life, He took the time to stop and worship. In this He was our example.

For many, to even contemplate an every-week day of rest away from your cares, work and the other distractions, which stop you focusing on the people you need to spend time with and on God, sounds impossible. It isn’t easy, I know, especially if you’re self-employed or work at the top levels of big business or government with high responsibilities. But the truth is, you need the Sabbath more than ever.

Here’s a challenge

This weekend, try inserting a Sabbath into your life;
• spend time with your family;
• stop thinking about work and life’s cares;
• avoid artificial entertainment along with their noise and stress.

Now observe what happens.
• You might want to get away in the bush or go to an isolated beach.
• You might even try dropping into church.

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