Life is busy, sometimes chaotic. Lately, I have felt like my to-do list is playing a trick on me. The more I do, the more there is to do. This weekend was especially busy. Had class on Saturday morning. I was supposed to make an appearance at the quarterly LAMP Mentors meeting, but since I missed most of it due to class, I just decided to miss all of it. Had to stop at my mothers, do some shopping, do household chores… Most importantly, I needed to study for my Business Management final exam coming up this Tuesday. I did poorly on the mid term and my overall grade hangs on this final exam.
For some strange reason, I also felt like I need to go to work. It was not mandatory, but recent changes at my job have left me feeling out of control. It is probably just that – a feeling – not indicative of reality, but nonetheless, I was hoping to spend some time doing work stuff this weekend.
This morning when I woke up, my mind was racing before my feet touched the floor. Nothing was really “wrong”. I wasn’t even stressed out. I just had a lot going on and I wasn’t sure what to do first. For a fleeting second, I thought about skipping church to get my to-do list done. I am sure glad that idiotic thought did not linger long.
I got to church about ten minutes early. I sat down and tried to focus on the Lord and prepare my heart to worship. Easier said than done. My mind kept going from work to school to housework to my Bible study to my mentee to my sponsored children… I asked the Lord to help me focus. Worship began and during the first two songs my mind wandered so many times and I had to pull it back. Focusing got easier during the third song. The song itself made it easy: “Holy Spirit you are welcomed here. Flood this place and fill the atmosphere. Your Glory God is what our hearts long for…” I love when worship is also a prayer. And that truly was my prayer. I am amazed at how easily my mind gets wrapped up in life’s tasks and I lose focus on Who is really important.
Well, the Holy Spirit knew what I needed. After the third song, Adam sat us down and told the congregation that sometimes we come in with so much baggage and our minds are filled with everything going on in our lives. He said they were going to sing a song over us while we sat. We could sing along if we wanted but the goal was to quiet ourselves and set our minds on the Lord.
It worked. As soon as the worship team said the first line of the song: “Lord, you’re beautiful. Your face is all I seek…” I felt myself relax and truly commune with the Lord… evidenced by a few tears slipping down my face. As I sat in His presence and focused on Jesus, I felt myself get put back on center again. I had felt so scattered, and now I was grounded once more. Then we transitioned into the song “Great I Am” and if anyone has trouble worshipping during that song – well – you are just spiritually dead as a doornail. Each time I hear that song, even in my car, I feel like I am standing at the entrance to His throne in heaven. Phew.
After worship, I thoroughly enjoyed the message. It doesn’t happen often but he made me want to go back and study the portion of Scripture he used.
After church, I went to breakfast with my friends like I usually do. We had a great time – or should I say I had a great time – I can’t speak for them. LOL. But I had a wonderful conversation and left laughing – in fact, it took awhile before I stopped laughing.
By now you are probably wondering why I am telling you every detail of my day. I’m getting there… when I got home I felt great. I still had my to-do list and I was still unsure of what to do first. But I poured myself a drink and sat at the desk (and of course checked Facebook – I have priorities). As I sat there, I thanked the Lord for the morning I had and I said “Lord, I really needed this morning.” He said “of course you did, that is why I commanded it.” I responded with an intelligent “huh?”. His soft patient voice spoke: “Remember the Sabbath Day”.
Oh yes. The Sabbath Day. One of the most misunderstood commands. Being raised Catholic, it meant “missing church was a sin”. In some Christian circles, it meant working on Sunday was a sin. This is the millionth example of religion deceiving people and keeping them from a relationship with Jesus. See religion is giving us rules to live by. Jesus didn’t come to give us rules, He came to give us life more abundantly. (John 10:10)
When God gave us the Ten Commandments through Moses, He wasn’t on a power trip like some folks might like to believe. In the same way a loving parent tells a child to not touch a hot stove or adhere to a curfew or go to bed at certain time, it is not for the purpose of exercising authority but it is for the child’s well being. When God told us to remember the Sabbath day, He was saying YOU NEED REST. He was telling us to stop the madness for one day. Stop the rat race. Stop. Come. Sit. Worship. Listen.
That spiritual rest brings us back to our core. It straightens our priorities and clears our vision. It gives us His perspective again. In Mark 2:27 Jesus says the Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. In other words, His command to rest was a gift to us – something God did for us, not something we need to do for God.
Something else I realized… notice that God didn’t say to just take a day off of work and sit around and watch TV all day? Or sit by the pool? Or do some leisurely activity that you enjoy. Not that those things are wrong, but He knew we needed more than physical rest. We need spiritual, mental, and emotional rest. And there is only one place where that is found – in His presence. Note that I didn’t say “in church”. I said in His presence. If would have taken the day off and simply lounged around, I would be physically rested, but that is it – and my stress level would have risen once I thought about my to-do list again. But after spending time resting in Him, I feel centered and peaceful.
Pastor Jay said something several years ago that applies here. He was talking about making time to seek the Lord when life is so busy and hectic. He said “divert daily, withdrawal weekly, abandon annually”. Each day we ought to divert our attention to God throughout the day. These moments can be in small spurts of time. But weekly, we need to withdrawal – shed the hustle and bustle and spend quality time with the Lord.
At 2pm today I realized that not everything on my to-do list was going to get done. I also realized that it’s okay. I asked the Lord how He wanted me to spend the rest of my day. I got 4 hours of studying for my final exam in. I also did some of my Bible study and a little housework. I didn’t go to work. I didn’t write my sponsored children. I didn’t see my mentee. It’s okay. I feel refocused and I feel rested in every way. I am ready for the week ahead – even with all the stress it may bring.
I can’t wait for heaven… when every day will be a Sabbath Day and when I sing “Lord, you’re beautiful, your Face is all I seek” I will no longer see His face through eyes of faith, but I will see Him as He is.
Until then, I am grateful for the ability to withdrawal weekly and remember the Sabbath Day.
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