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Key Bible Verse: "That is why the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and set it apart as holy" (Exodus 20:11). Bonus Reading:Exodus 20:8-11

It took time to break old habits. In the corporate world, I looked for fulfillment in my achievements. Output equaled opinion of self. I'd forgotten that God ascribed importance to me as a person, not as a producer. I had to remember who I was: someone created in God's image.

I gradually rediscovered the primacy of being over doing. I first cleared my schedule on my Sabbath. After a few weeks, I allowed myself the luxury of a nap. I also prayed more. Observing a Sabbath began changing the rhythm and pace of my life.

You may be in the same position I was: wanting a rest but wondering if you can really afford it. Is taking a Sabbath possible in our need-it-yesterday society? Initially skeptical, I've discovered that the Sabbath offers an oasis of openness to the Holy One, a unique opportunity settle our spirits before God, to hear His voice. The Sabbath should include four elements:

1. Communion with God and family
2. Separation from the constant tug of work and the world
3. Restoration of mind, body, and soul
4. Contemplation of how and where God has been at work.

-John Anthony Page in Discipleship Journal

My Response: I could restore the importance of "being" by …

Thought to Apply: God, by giving the Sabbath, has given 52 springs in every year.

-Samuel Taylor Coleridge (English author, 19th century)

Adapted from Discipleship Journal (1-2/02) by permission.

Copyright © 2002 by the author or Christianity Today International/Men of Integrity magazine.
Click here for reprint information on Men of Integrity.

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Prayer for the Week

I acknowledge, my divine Creator, that You've created me to function in a certain rhythm.

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