God created the world and rested on the seventh day. God then commanded his children to rest on the seventh day. The rest God calls us to be in is not slumber, or bingeing Netflix, teledramas, spiritual readings and bible studies. The rest, or the ‘shabbat’ God calls us to, is a place of transcendence. There is an ancient practice of farmers fallowing the ground. This is a practice of leaving sections of the farmland unplanted for a period of time. This is when the ground beneath can start to produce important nutrients and bring to the surface so that the soil is regenerated. The crop yields far greater. Today rest is frowned upon. But it is the sabbath that helps us to be refreshed and renewed. Sabbath is not a day where we do our washing, cleaning, or family get-togethers. It is a deepening of transforming rest, a period of regeneration. A time we let God speak to us, and allow the deeper soil to be churned. A time to focus on our relationship to God, family and communion with his people.

PRAYER: Abba Father, help us to enter the true rest in your arms by casting away our to-do lists and daily grind. Amen.