The Sabbath

I thought I had reached the proverbial ‘bottom’, only to find the ground beneath me was crumbling and to my horror, an even worse picture of me was to emerge. It’s strange in that despite acknowledging my own guilt and recognising my own ugliness, there was a sense of calmness. I didn’t feel the need to stretch out my arms to possible rescuers or even to call out for help. My fate had already been sealed and though I feel I had failed this life-long test miserably, with numerous missed opportunities, glaring omissions and appalling acts of stupidity, there was a quiet reassuring voice that I might just pass! I can barely believe my good fortune but somewhat wary of requesting a full explanation.

However, it would appear that we have to some extent distorted His words and ignored His advice, which all of us have found to be so difficult, like being asked to fly. Of course, the truth was that we were never meant to ‘fly’ alone, but rather we had to relinquish control and place ourselves at His mercy. However, we decided that there must be alternative meanings or secret interpretations, perhaps God would have us ‘run’, with or without ‘carrying heavy burdens’ or maybe descend into some deep cavern or scale some precarious mountain slope. Indeed, we pride ourselves on accepting these supposed challenges to prove ourselves worthy. Moreover, we sneer at those who have got it ‘wrong’ and in order that others are not misled, we canonise these edicts. These ‘helpful’ instructions simply cause others to stumble and possibly even give up.

The purpose of the Sabbath, to rest from the struggles, to let God work within us, ‘to fly’ at ease, to do that which is so seemingly difficult if not impossible, to love one another. It’s as if in handling out the ‘bread of life’ to people, we have contaminated it and while thousands might be ‘fed’ the discarded fragments of advice eclipse the real essence of God’s word many times over. The main reason God’s Spirit was allowed to reside in us was not as a ‘reward’ or to enable us to speak in varied tongues, perform miracles or espouse great words of wisdom, it was to give us the inner strength to love and where needed, lay down our lives for others