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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2019-10-24, Page 30PAGE 30. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, OCTOBER 24, 2019. God made us to live: Ireland Catching a ride Sure, recess can be fun, but it can be even more fun when you’re being carried around while going about your business. Here, Emily Blair, top, looked to her friend Paige Ferguson for some help getting around the yard at Hullett Central Public School on Monday morning. (Denny Scott photo) Continued from page 25 Pharisees numerous times for his or his disciples’ activity on the Sabbath. The Pharisees believed in a very strict interpretation of Sabbath. Pharisees and legalists will tell you that you have to do Sabbath “right”. That there is a very specific list of things you are not allowed to do, and that list is argued over and interpreted in so many different ways that you’ll never be quite sure if you’re actually doing it. In fact, you’d likely be so stressed about doing Sabbath “right” that you wouldn’t get any rest at all! The Pharisees wanted Jesus to follow their idea of Sabbath – strict observance, without an abundance of compassion or empathy. Legalism today might look like insisting that your Sabbath is on Sunday and only on Sunday. It might be insisting that playing cards on Sunday is against the rules, or dancing, or grocery shopping, or playing a game of hockey. Legalism, being a modern day Pharisee, looks like many things. And then there is the other hand; the modern world, which likes to insist that a Sabbath isn’t important at all. There is a Chinese proverb that says, “No one who rises before dawn 360 days a year fails to make his family rich.” It’s probably true. It’s probably also true that this hypothetical workaholic doesn’t see his family much and is pretty miserable. But this sort of attitude is pervasive in our culture. Time is money, and money is king, so get to work. The hurrier I go, the behinder I get. But it’s not how the world should be. The world is meant to have Sabbath. It’s been in the design since the beginning. There must be something besides the legalism of the Pharisees and the work, work, work culture that surrounds us. So instead of trying to think like a Pharisee or a high- powered executive, I want us to think like a Christ follower. Let’s think about what Sabbath means to God, and what it should, therefore, mean to us. God gave us Sabbath as a gift. As a day of rest. A day that is separate from the hustle, bustle and busy-ness and work of the other six. A day to honour God. A day of healing. But here’s the thing – rest and honouring God are going to mean different things to different people. It’s not always going to be Sunday. In fact, I’ll have a pretty hard time with that, don’t you think? It doesn’t have to be Sunday. And it doesn’t always have to be 24 straight hours. But it should be a specific period of time that you intentionally set your work and stress aside. I have a few questions for you to get you in this mindset and set you up for your own Sabbath, whatever that might mean. First. What difficulties keep you from honouring the Sabbath? For me, it’s my cell phone. I wish I could just turn it off or walk away, but there are legitimate emergencies that I need to be available for. Unfortunately, that means that others can get in contact with me too. Perhaps I need to keep my phone on and in earshot, but not on my body. Second. How do you or would you honour God on your Sabbath? I spend time in prayer and reading a passage from the Bible. I also like to do something outside on my Sabbath, so that I can experience God’s creation. Lastly, which activities replenish and lift you up, that you could do on your Sabbath? Playing the piano does that for me. So does time with my family and friends. I love an afternoon or evening spent playing Dungeons & Dragons with my friends – that’s replenishing to me. (I suppose I’ve now outted myself as a giant nerd!) Overall, Sabbath is about waking up to and appreciating a world that we didn’t make, and a friendship with God that we didn’t have to earn. Taking a load off our shoulders and taking some time to sit with God. Appreciating what God has made and done. Taking some time to breathe. Just breathe. For God made us to live, not just work. God made us to spend our seventh day in rest in God’s presence. This is a gift. Go ahead and take it. II O nternn OOur bi net salel iggest isiisisi II iss s on n nntern sonnsonnns ss oonnon n wwww!w!w!wwnownownow! net sa owwwowwwowwnoonnowow INSIN le 33TION!ALATASTAAL FREE TTALL N! Speed s up to 2 1 1 year term 25 Mbps m required. for just $69.99/m month2 ! Call 1-866-953-2099 tod xplornet om/legal. 2Offer is available until November 30, 2019 for new customers only bility at your location. Site check fee may apply. If installation requirements go net Communications Inc. day! t.com e available. 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