How to Rest: Five Tips
For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.—Ex. 20:11
In my last post, I talked about the importance of rest—not just for physical rejuvenation, vocational health, or even merely Sunday worship.
We rest because it reorients us to remember that we will one day enjoy rest from our labors here on earth. We easily get derailed, don’t we?
By pausing at regular weekly intervals to spiritually rest, we can physically enact weekly what we will one day experience in eternity. This helps us connect the dots and brings it down to the level of our everyday living.
So how can we start doing this?
Designate Your Day
I say this because not everyone can rest on Sunday. For some (like pastors), that day is a work day.
But that doesn’t mean we don’t need rest. We do. So my husband and I take Monday as our day to reconnect with God.
So if you likewise work on weekends, begin by picking a day of the week to be your day of rest. Find the day that is the least likely to be disturbed with other interruptions.
Readjust Your Work Schedule
For me, this was the key. After setting your day of rest, then we need to adjust the rest of the week of work.
We will never finish everything, but how much do you need to finish so that you can rest without things hanging over your head?
Two benefits come from this: First, it quickly helps me surface what is most important for the week. Second, it becomes a motivator and keeps me from wasting my time or procrastinating because I want that day of rest.
Start the Night Before
We often believe that the day starts in the morning, but in Hebrew thinking, the day actually begins at sundown, with rest (John 19:31). God views the night—when we rest—as the preface to our work. (See the pattern of days in Genesis 1.)
In a similar vein, we have opted to begin our day of rest the night before with some time as a family, with leftovers for dinner. If I cook during the week with this in mind, I usually have a nice assortment.
Others have marked this meal as the beginning of their day of rest by putting aside digital devices in a box, prayer, and/or Scripture reading. Afterwards, make it a fun time for the kids by playing games, watching a suitable movie, or other fun activity. Or simply go to bed earlier!
Starting the night before helps us to prepare for the rest. Just as we cannot go from 80 mph to zero instantly, we need time to help us slow down. It will help you enter into the rest and receive the benefits it is meant to give.
Make Connecting With God Your First Priority
If you have taken time to slow down and sleep earlier, you’ll be in a much better posture to enjoy your day of rest. I usually let myself sleep as long as I can.
Of course, parents of young children may not have this luxury and at this stage, you will still need to take care of their daily needs. But if you have cleared the day of other commitments and work, that should leave you with at least more buffer and space.
So what do you do during this time? For many, going to church is the main focus. There, we are able to enjoy two of the key goals of the day of rest: spending time with God and enjoying fellowship with others.
For me, I mimic this on Monday in several ways:
enjoying worship music
meditating on God’s Word
reviewing the Gospel
seeking deeper cleansing and repentance
planning for the week to come
taking extended time to pray for the week, myself, and others
Connecting on Two Dimensions
As I mentioned, not only is this time to prioritize my relationship with God, it is time to fellowship and enjoy others—including time to myself. After spending time with God, I might
Invest in your marriage
Get together with a friend or visit with a neighbor—perfect for discussing books!
Engage in a fun activity with your children
Take time to leisurely read for fun or engage in a hobby
Do something physically relaxing, like take a bath or go on a leisurely walk
Work on the opposite. Rabbi Abraham Heschel suggests another way to think about this: “"If you work with your hands, sabbath with your mind. If you work with your mind, sabbath with your hands.” This means physical labor in the yard for my pastor husband while I like to create with my hands.
Taking time to observe a weekly day of rest does take forethought, hard work, and planning in advance. But it is so worth it. Once I tasted the goodness of God’s gift, I didn’t want to go back.
Will you accept His gift too?
