Sabbath...a Commandment i m Struggling to keep...
in this modern society, where the pace of life has increased tremendously, where the cost of living is sky-high, it is really hard for us to take a step back & find ourselves a time to rest...
many of us know tt God had ordained rest since the creation of the world. it is so impt tt God even placed it in the 10 commandments:"Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your manservant or maidservant, nor your animals, nor the alien within your gates. For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy." (Exo 20:8-11, NIV)
i must confess tt as a Christian, i know this commandment very well, but many times i would just brush it aside. very slowly, i would just slip into a routine of work & sleep so tt i can work the next day. when Sunday comes, it'll just be going to church for service, listening to the same old messages, occasionally inspiring enough to stand during altar call, only to carry on with my routine all over again when Monday comes again. Sunday has slowly turned into a time where most Christians stock up their fridges & shelves for the week, doing laundry & household chores, run errands, & totally forgotten to take a break to reflect.
well, while we have gradually placed Sabbath at the back of our minds, God hasn't forgotten His commandments to us. have you realized tt once in a while we may just fall sick for no particular reason, injured ourselves such tt we may be immobilized for a couple of days/weeks or even months? there r 2 reasons to this: 1. our physical body isn't super. like a machine, it'll break down once in a while if we dun rest it & maintain it. 2. it is also God's way to remind us to take a break from work. as we fall sick or injured, we r forced to rest, cos if we dun, we'll nvr get well. only then will we slow down our pace & sleep more, read the bible more, reflect on our past few days/weeks/months since we last rested. well, tt's what i m doing now anyway... *sheepish smile*
even now, i do have a note of warning to you who are read my blog right now. like i mentioned, when we fall sick/injured, it's God's mandatory rest. DO NOT try to work cos nothing good will come out of it. i know tt in this fast-paced world, it's not quite possible to rest even when we r down, assignments & deadlines will not be pushed back, bosses will hurry us back to work. but DO remember tt we have already violated God's 4th commandment in the 1st place, therefore dun try to push it further, or you'll regret it... & if you do keep your "make up" Sabbath, God is gracious & He will grant you the strength to complete your work b4 the deadlines... just like what i put for my MSN nick, "if u dun make time for Sabbath, God will find time for u, & u wun like it..."
many of us know tt God had ordained rest since the creation of the world. it is so impt tt God even placed it in the 10 commandments:"Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your manservant or maidservant, nor your animals, nor the alien within your gates. For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy." (Exo 20:8-11, NIV)
i must confess tt as a Christian, i know this commandment very well, but many times i would just brush it aside. very slowly, i would just slip into a routine of work & sleep so tt i can work the next day. when Sunday comes, it'll just be going to church for service, listening to the same old messages, occasionally inspiring enough to stand during altar call, only to carry on with my routine all over again when Monday comes again. Sunday has slowly turned into a time where most Christians stock up their fridges & shelves for the week, doing laundry & household chores, run errands, & totally forgotten to take a break to reflect.
well, while we have gradually placed Sabbath at the back of our minds, God hasn't forgotten His commandments to us. have you realized tt once in a while we may just fall sick for no particular reason, injured ourselves such tt we may be immobilized for a couple of days/weeks or even months? there r 2 reasons to this: 1. our physical body isn't super. like a machine, it'll break down once in a while if we dun rest it & maintain it. 2. it is also God's way to remind us to take a break from work. as we fall sick or injured, we r forced to rest, cos if we dun, we'll nvr get well. only then will we slow down our pace & sleep more, read the bible more, reflect on our past few days/weeks/months since we last rested. well, tt's what i m doing now anyway... *sheepish smile*
even now, i do have a note of warning to you who are read my blog right now. like i mentioned, when we fall sick/injured, it's God's mandatory rest. DO NOT try to work cos nothing good will come out of it. i know tt in this fast-paced world, it's not quite possible to rest even when we r down, assignments & deadlines will not be pushed back, bosses will hurry us back to work. but DO remember tt we have already violated God's 4th commandment in the 1st place, therefore dun try to push it further, or you'll regret it... & if you do keep your "make up" Sabbath, God is gracious & He will grant you the strength to complete your work b4 the deadlines... just like what i put for my MSN nick, "if u dun make time for Sabbath, God will find time for u, & u wun like it..."
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