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Now that Christmas liturgies are in the rear view mirror for the year I want to draw your attention to a critically important aspect of your ministry...
Rest.
God commanded us to rest. (Exodus 20:8-11)
8 Remember the sabbath day, and keep it holy. 9 Six days you shall labor and do all your work. 10 But the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God; you shall not do any work—you, your son or your daughter, your male or female slave, your livestock, or the alien resident in your towns. 11 For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but rested the seventh day; therefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day and consecrated it.
Rest is so important, that He placed it on the same list with...
"You shall not kill"
"You shall not commit adultery"
"You shall not steal"
So, rest must be very important to God. Why would that be so?
Growing up, my understanding of relationship with God is that He is good, and it seemed that there were lists of things that I wasn't allowed to do, and things I was supposed to do. "Don't steal. Don't covet. Attend mass on Sundays and Holy Days", etc. It was in my 20's at a parish mission that I heard someone give a talk that changed my perspective. It went something like this....
'God, who created you, knows you intimately. The commandments aren't God's "Do as I say" list. They are God's way of keeping your heart safe. You see, the same God that created you knows what your heart needs to grow in love, and what it needs to avoid so that you don't end up hurt and suffering'
Makes sense, right? Most of us would agree that stealing, lying, killing and coveting are awful things and we (try to) avoid them. So why do so many of us avoid these awful things and yet don't obey the command to take a sabbath, to rest?
Our society has elevated being overworked and exhausted to a place of great pride and admiration. "She worked 80 hours a week to get that promotion." "He grinds from 5AM until bedtime to get it all done".
Let's face it, we tend to do this in ministry also....
"My teams are rehearsing every night"
"I have 7 masses to play in the next two days"
"The core team and I were here every day this week until midnight to get everything ready for this retreat"
So why does God place importance on rest when we clearly have so much work to do?
I think it is because we can't pour from an empty cup.
Our ministry is an overflow of our life. Our life should overflow into our ministry. God wants us to breathe His light and life into others. How can we possibly do that when we are stressed, burned out, and completely disconnected from Him? He knows that when we take a sabbath, He can pour into us and fill us up. Our hearts need that time of connection with Him so that they don't end up hurt and suffering.
Taking a full day sabbath may not be realistic in your life and ministry, but here are some ideas on how to work a sabbath into your life schedule...
One morning a week, plan to wake up and spend some time in prayer with a cup of coffee, and then get a good walk in outside.
Make a daily mass. It may be helpful to attend a daily mass in a parish other than the one you work in for your sabbath day.
Spend an hour worshipping on your instrument. NOT practicing. This hour of prayer will transform your weekend ministry.
If you tend to be an evening person, get a late afternoon workout in followed by some prayer time and an evening mass. Then refresh yourself with a quiet dinner.
Dedicate an hour or two to reading Scripture and journaling a few times a week.
These are ideas to get you started, and your sabbath needs to be something that fills you up. It is important to take care of your body & your spirit.
You will find that the time you dedicate to spending with Lord will not be lost. It will be gain. You will find renewal and creativity there. You will find the Lord there. You will find yourself as you are...one of His beloved sons or daughters. That is who we are called to be.
Do you take a sabbath? How do you find rest with the Lord? Leave a comment below.
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