The Joy of the Sabbath

The other day I was talking to a friend about the joy that the Sabbath brings. I do not have to work on that day. I can set aside cares and responsibilities that living in our contemporary world brings. I can take a nap in the middle of the day, I can reunite with members of my faith community, I can call friends, I can take a walk with my family.

I can do some missionary work. The Sabbath is a day that I can set aside worldly cares and be unencumbered in my kingdom living, however with a young child, I am beginning to wonder how to talk of and pass on the love for the Sabbath.

Many of us as children longed for the sun to go down on Sabbath because we didn't have the cares of the week. We didn't have the responsibililties waiting around the corner. We didn't have the daily grind seeking to call us back. And so we don't see that aspect of the Sabbath as welcome relief.

In addition, many middle class American children are shielded from the great pain and heartache arond the world. The Sabbath as a pointed to the coming kingdom is not as important when your present kingdom doesn't seem so bad.

But these things perhaps pushes me to realize that undestanding the Sabbath is my point. It is on me to pass on this important ideal. I pray that God will give me the patience and love to pass on this blessing. as children, we are shielded from the blessing that the Sabbath points to. There are