A Season of Holy Days

If all goes well, I will finally complete my Masters Degree this January. After a long road, I will be able to finish the final classes I need this semester. With this process comes the inevitable thesis project. The only requirement for this project was that it somehow connects with youth, culture, or mission.

While pondering the many ideas and issues that I could choose from, I couldn’t shake the one thing I’ve heard over and over again. I’ve heard this from parents, teenagers, retirees, and even kids. The message is clear and I’m sure you’ve heard or said something like this at least once in the past month.

“I’d love to, but I don’t have the time.”

“Where did all the time go?”

 “I don’t have enough time.”

“I’m really stretched for time.”

“I wish I had more time.”

Do any of these phrases sound familiar? There is one word that keeps coming up and that is, time. We never seem to have enough time for the things we want to do and people we want to be with. This word, time, coincides with another word that has recently gripped my consciousness - Sabbath. For it is in Sabbath keeping that we pay homage to the gift of time. In a world where we never seem to have enough time, the gift of time is more important than ever.

Sabbath is not only a gift; it is also the practice of sanctifying time. When we live in sanctified time, we live in holy time. In holy time, we are reoriented to the bearer of all time, and are sent out to live our lives pulsing in rhythm, in time, with God. Living to the beat of this rhythm of God is how we live God’s mission in the world.

When we lose track of God’s time, we lose track of our mission in the world. Now, as we enter the month of December, it becomes even easier to lose track of time. Some say this is the busiest time of the year, with Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years all stacked up on each other. But with the busy-ness of this holiday season, we can also remember that holidays came from holy days. We are living in a season of holy days. We are living in sanctified time. Each of our days can be lived in the rhythm of Sabbath, not just those three particular holidays marked on the calendar, and not just a day tagged on to the end of our week.

So I use my Masters project as an opportunity to invite all of us into a season of Sabbath. What will happen to our lives when we choose to dedicate our time to Sabbath, rather than continue in the struggle to somehow make or find more time for Sabbath? Even if you choose to not follow along with my project, the invitation to dedicate your time to Sabbath still stands. May Christ’s presence be a blessing to you all in this holy season.