Return, O my soul, to your rest;
for the Lord has dealt bountifully with you.
(Psalm 116:7 ESV)
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| Trinity Episcopal Church, Van Cleef Lake, NY |
What comes to mind when you think of the Sabbath? Do you think of God resting on the seventh day? Do you think of going to church to worship God with other believers? Do you think of resting from work? Words like Sabbath, worship, quiet time and rest, raise expectations that we and others have placed on them.
To be honest I never thought of having a quiet time on a Sunday, because I practice other ways of worshiping God on that day, such as Bible classes, praying together and corporate worship services. Some Sundays, I would like to define rest literally and stay in bed.
I often take an extra Sabbath on Mondays, since most Sundays are full with church and family gatherings. To me Sabbath is a time to cease regular work and just be with God; no agenda driving the day.
In 30 Ways to Wake Up Your Quiet Time, Pam Farrel surprised me with actual ideas of how to have a quiet time on a Sunday, as well as ways to incorporate the sermon experience into your daily devotions:
Sunday can be a challenging day to have quiet times. Often in the rush of getting to church, we forget to meet with God!
Try getting . . . early to church. Sit quietly in the pew and pray that God will meet you and the others who come.
Bring a small gift of encouragement or a card telling one of the ministries at church that you appreciate them and are praying for them.
Sermons can become a springboard for personal devotions.
Use sermon notes for quiet times to review how God might want you to apply the sermon to your everyday life.
During the sermon write down questions about topics you'd like to learn more about or thoughts you'd like to consider in a deeper manner at a later quiet time.
Use the prayer list...to pray for others in your church. Or pray through the church's calendar.
Use traditional liturgies and prayers...
Allow Jesus to pastor you each Sunday as you connect to him.
©Pam Farrel from 30 Ways to Wake Up Your Quiet Time (IVP).
For more devotional books by Pam www.Love-wise.com
What does Sabbath mean to you?
Ah.....rest....just what I desire... Love the pic of that church. What a gorgeous setting. Did you find this along the river ways on your summer adventure?
ReplyDeleteHugs,
Kelly
Kelly- yes rest is on my agenda here very soon...literal take break kind of rest... Maybe even midday cat type naps :)
DeleteYes this church is is one of the most photographed churches in the finger lakes
Love that photo! I daily spend time in God's Word and my journal, and I would love to spend time quietly with God as soon as I enter our church.......the sanctuary (likely their is some etymological (is that a word, kel?) relationship btw the words sabbath and sanctuary), but ours is always so noisy.....people chitting and chatting. We have a WONDERFUL AND FRIENDLY church, but I love the quietude of "high" churches. I would love to just enter the quiet, so I can think, pray, rest. Ah.....rest, as Kelly said.
ReplyDeleteLynni- here's to a season of rest...glad you have a friendly congregation
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