The Sabbath

I am reading a book entitled Sabbath Keeping; Finding Freedom in the Rhythms of Rest by Lynne Baab. It is a relatively short book, but interestingly written. I hope to find inspiration for observing Sabbath in our lives and home. Sure, we already have “Sundays”…but sometimes, Sundays offer harried mornings as we get ourselves and 4 kids ready for church. We have responsibilities to do at church, and then we rush home with hungry children. I’ve made some strides towards observance, in that, we are generally eating at home now, around our own table. We try to keep the day restful and free of errand-running. Sunday evenings have become a sort of “date night” for my husband and I, as we put children to bed and relax with a favorite hour-long crime drama on TV. Sometimes, we order take-out, just for us. Other times, we pop popcorn to munch on. Yet, we do not enter the week as recharged as I wish…I often find myself doing laundry Sunday afternoons, for instance. My husband’s work schedule requires that he work one Sunday a month as well, and his weekly schedule varies every week. So we must be creative when finding a Sabbath Day (and by that, I mean, a day or rest) whenever it may be.

As a child, I looked forward to church every week, but did not enjoy Sunday afternoon naps. The house was “too” quiet. Sunday night church did not generally include children’s classes, and so I often wished I could simply stay home. Simply put, I never cared much for Sundays. Sometimes, my Dad went into work…it seemed he worked 7 days a week, and so I wondered what the point of observing the Ten Commandments was, when we could pick and choose which ones to keep! As a young wife, I hated Sundays because I quickly grew tired of the routine we feel into; we did not choose a church together, initially, but rather attended the church my husband grew up in. This caused great strain over time, because we needed to break free and cut apron strings, so to speak. Eventually we did, and Sundays became a day I looked forward to! Sometimes, the day was dull, but it was generally restful, at least. I wish that I had worked more fervently at creating a Sabbath in our home BEFORE we added 4 children to the mix!

When visiting the rural community my Grandma lived in, I always loved attending her small, country church. Many of its members were family, which was fun…and we were given fruity cereal in Dixie cups, for snack time in Sunday School. I didn’t enjoy listening to the sermon, but Grandma often had gum in her purse and that helped for awhile. After church, we would run and play in the church yard, and many times, there would be a covered dish lunch to enjoy. Those farm ladies sure knew how to cook! Those lunches carried special memories over the years, affecting my senses, as I grew. The many wonderful tastes, the smells of food in that multi-purpose room, the sounds of ladies working together in the kitchen, of laughing, the murmur of voices mingled together in various conversations. The sight of long tables set side by side, and filled with church members and family members, all gathering to share a meal. Even today, I appreciate the tiny congregation we worship with, partly because, we have a monthly meal together. An old-fashioned covered-dish lunch! It is that nostalgic feeling I wish to preserve, not only on that 3rd Sunday for the shared meal, but also for each Sunday, when our family gathers around our own table in our home.

The obstacles to creating a Sabbath will be simply “choosing” a time for our family, and deciding “what” Sabbath means to us. What will we do--or not do? How will I prepare for a day of rest, while managing all my other responsibilities in the home? How will I rest when those responsibilities continue, even on our Sabbath? Yet, even as I mull these questions, I recognize the need for rest in the rhythm of our life. We do not live a harried life, rushing here and there, to and from activities. We eat as a family regularly, although there are hectic periods at my husband’s employment, which do not allow the relaxed evenings we both prefer. Still, we need (I need) a day of rest. I need a day not to do laundry, and to do minimal kitchen work. We need a day to recharge, a day to set aside for our family, our children. Time to read or play, that we, as parents, are not pulled elsewhere. Difficult though, because in one sense, it is those very things that we may need a rest from! As a home schooling Mom, I am with my children all day every day. But, on the Sabbath, I’d like that presence to be different. To be lighter, to enjoy my kids rather than barking orders, or managing time, overseeing studies, etc. I read this book to develop my own ideas, but also to draw inspiration from the author’s ideas and experiences, as we work to create a Sabbath Day to keep in our home.

I hope to create stronger family bonds through observing a Sabbath, and I hope to teach my children this concept of weekly rest, as they grow. I hope to build in a weekly time of simply enjoying one another, free from the constraints of time, deadlines, work, and so on, that the weekly routine holds.