God doesn’t want me to do more for Him, He wants me to be more with Him.
Admittedly, this is something I’m not very good at. If I’m being honest, I’ve struggled for most of my time as follower of Christ to have a consistent, solitary time with Him. At training camp we had a session entitled ‘The Ladder of Legalism,’ in which we identified the trap we fall into. That is, the balance between doing things to validate our faith (as is talked about in James 2) and doing things as a way of trying to earn our faith or at least God’s favor. And the tricky part is that these two, oftentimes, look the same on the outside. But they couldn’t be any further from each other on the inside. What makes them different is the motivation driving the action. What’s driving our actions; relationship or fear?
Selah (stop and think about that for a sec).
That question hit me hard! Fear is a bad long-term motivator. And that’s probably why I’ve had so much trouble consistently resting in God’s presence. The great news is that everything I’ve ever known about legalism is torn in two with the temple curtain! And God, in His infinite wisdom, did this so that we can get to know Him. He wants us to be in His presence. He wants us to rest in his presence. The Hebrew word for Sabbath means intermission, break, or rest. And Jesus made it clear in Mark 2:27 that “The Sabbath was made for man…” He gave it to us for our benefit; for our relationship with Him. It’s a powerful tool. That’s probably why our enemy wants to distract us from it.
“God just wants to put His arm around you and have a steak with you.” -Fred Stoeker
Sabbath is all about pulling into the presence of God and staying there…and maybe having a steak there (or some nice steamed broccoli for my vegetarian friends). We get to this place by asking the question, ‘How can I best rest in His presence?’ And that may look different for each person.
“Get in your zone!” I was a varsity athlete in two sports in college. God has given me a pretty awesome athletic ability that I’ve been able to develop. And one of the ways I’ve honed this talent is by knowing and doing the things that will get me into “My Zone.” This is the place where I perform at my peak almost effortlessly; everything I do seems to fall into place. There’s no better feeling in sport than when you’re in your zone! I found a very specific routine before a competition would set up the environment I needed to find my zone. As I was thinking about that, I realized this concept can be applied to anything in life, including Sabbath Rest. What things can I do to set up the environment to best rest in His presence? How can I find my “Sabbath Zone,” if you will?
As I said before, I’m not very good at resting. But I’m excited for what God’s going to teach me about rest over the next year of my life! I believe it will take my relationship with God to the next level!
Prayer Request: pray that I find my “Sabbath Zone” and learn to go deeper and deeper into resting in Him. And that my relationship would flourish to a new level!
