I can't claim that anything I've written over the past 40 days is "new." There are countless books about the Sabbath, the necessity of rest, the ways the consumption of technology and media are affecting our brains, the troubles of an over-scheduled life, etc. etc. I don't wish to simply say more of the same thing. Instead, my hope for this experiment has had to do with building community engagement and involvement. If we are to revision and redefine sabbath for the 21st century, it is not merely a matter of Bible study and rest; though, that is where many of us may need to begin. Instead, it is the practice of both/and. As you may have noticed, each week of this process has had a theme or title that involved this practice. Week One wasn't just gratitude - it was grattitude
AND letting go. In this same way, sabbath for the 21st century isn't just sabbath - it's Sabbath Mission.
Early on, as I contemplated our pressing need for sabbath, it also became clear to me that it wasn't just a matter of revisiting an old idea. It was a matter of complete renewal, even reformation. Sabbath is easily and often confused with liesure time, a break, or a holiday; rather than a perspective and rhythm by which we can shape our lives. On the other hand, mission without sabbath is often understood and spoken as action and works-based. It can be ego-driven without the balance of sabbath. It can become all about how
we are bringing about the Kingdom of God. Mission needs sabbath as sabbath needs mission. Without the counterpoint of one, the other is lost. As we begin living this both/and, Sabbath Mission, we become more alive in our engagement with life itself. We live Christ-centered, rather than ego-driven.
In the community we've built through this experiment we have grown in our understanding of a sabbath life. We've been inspired to pass it on, talk about it, and try something new; expressing our new growth out in the world. These deepend relationships, this new expression, is the mission of God in motion. We have stumbled upon its definition on our own and go from here living in it. That's why we need sabbath and that's why we, as a people of faith, are also a people of mission.
Sabbath Mission will not look the same for everybody or the same every day. To be a people of Sabbath Mission does not mean we will spend every day perfectly in gratitude/letting go, care for creation/confession, worship/idolatry, peace/bitterness, and rest/distraction. Some days, all we will be up for or feel we have the time for is simply breathing. Other days, we will have the gift of space, more time to wander through the rituals and practices that make sabbath Sabbath Mission for us. As the heading of this blog wonders, the point isn't so much the amount of time we have, but how we honor it.
What will happen when we dedicate our time to sabbath? There is not one answer to this. It is one of those questions that constantly leads to new questions and new conclusions, depending on the day.
The biblical poet suggested that there are 613 commandments: 365 (the number of days in the year) plus 248 (the number of bones in the body, according to the science of the day). In other words, we bring all the parts of who we are, "the bad and the good," into every moment, and every moment is a commanding moment. - Irwin Kula, Yearnings
Martin Luther teaches us that we are simulatneously saint and sinner. This isn't about what we do and don't do. Rather, we are named Saint because of who we are in relation to God, forgiven sinners. It is the grace of God that has transformed this relationship into something wholly new. It is in this grace that we can face the truth of who we are both saint and sinner.
Consider what this means in our relationship to time. We are simultaneously saint and sinner, bringing both the good and bad with us into every moment. Every "commanding moment" is an opportunity to practice Sabbath Mission, an opportunity to live out our new relationship with God, freed by the radical grace of forgiveness. In the same way that our relationship with God has been transformed by grace, so has our relationship with time been claimed and sanctified (made holy). Some days, Sabbath Mission will come easy to us. Other days it will be struggle. But the unchanging truth of Sabbath Mission is the transformative power of God's grace, alive. Whether we find ourselves on a good day or bad, as we are faced by each commanding moment, we can rest in God's word, "my grace is sufficient for you" (2 Corinthians 12:9). When we finally rest in this Word, we live Sabbath Mission.
You've forced me to talk this way, and I do it against my better judgment. But now that we're at it, I may as well bring up the matter of visions and revelations that God gave me. For instance, I know a man who, fourteen years ago, was seized by Christ and swept in ecstasy to the heights of heaven. I really don't know if this took place in the body or out of it; only God knows. I also know that this man was hijacked into paradise - again, whether in or out of the body, I don't know; God knows. There he heard the unspeakable spoken, but was forbidden to tell what he heard.This is the man I want to talk about. But about myself, I'm not saying another word apart from the humiliations. If I had a mind to brag a little, I could probably do it without looking ridiculous, and I'd still be speaking plain truth all the way. But I'll spare you. I don't want anyone imagining me as anything other than the fool you'd encounter if you saw me on the street or heard me talk. Because of the extravagance of those revelations, and so I wouldn't get a big head, I was given the gift of a handicap to keep me in constant touch with my limitations. Satan's angel did his best to get me down; what he in fact did was push me to my knees. No danger then of walking around high and mighty! At first I didn't think of it as a gift, and begged God to remove it. Three times I did that, and then he told me, My grace is enough; it's all you need. My strength comes into its own in your weakness. Once I heard that, I was glad to let it happen. I quit focusing on the handicap and began appreciating the gift. It was a case of Christ's strength moving in on my weakness. Now I take limitations in stride, and with good cheer, these limitations that cut me down to size - abuse, accidents, opposition, bad breaks. I just let Christ take over! And so the weaker I get, the stronger I become.
- 2 Corinthians 12:1-10 (The Message)
In what ways has the 40 Day Sabbath Experiment helped you face your weaknesses?
In what ways has the 40 Day Sabbath Experiment helped you recognize God's strength despite your weakness? How has it made you stronger?
How will you continue to explore Sabbath Mission in your life?
