QAThe Sabbath

Since college, I have felt a strong conviction to follow the Sabbath. As part of my RA training at college, we read The Rest of God by Mark Buchanan, and it was very convicting and hopeful to me.  In college, my roommate and I set aside Saturday mornings as kind of a Sabbath.  We would sleep in (ya know, like 8:30 :)) and then when it was nice, we would take our Bibles and blankets and go to a park at the base of the mountains and read and pray.  No homework, no FB and no texting on Saturday mornings :). It was so nice and was truly a good gift from God.  Fast forward to now with 2 little munchkins running around the house, and it seems impossible to sit and rest almost ever, lol.  Any thoughts on how to incorporate Sabbath rest with a 2 and 1 year old at home?  Thanks!

Sabbath rest with young kids can be very challenging. However, I applaud you for trying because it's important. Although I don't think there's any one perfect remedy, I'll share a few suggestions to consider. All of them may not work for you, but hopefully you can find something that works for you:

1. Start by realizing you're in a brief season of life. Since I have four young boys myself, I know what it's like to feel the constant neediness involved with young kids. I know what it's like to never feel as you have a break! I get it. Everybody tells you that it's only a season and that it'll pass before you know it. Although when you're in that season, those words don't seem very comforting--it's true! It is a season, so ask God to help you trust Him with that. There's some relief that comes (gradually) as your kids learn to sleep through the night, get out diapers, and learn to be more self-sufficient. In the meantime, what should you do? That leads to number two:

2. Look for windows of opportunity to take Sabbath rest. You may not get to take an entire day off with little kids in the house. You may have to look at the whole concept of rest differently. Maybe down-time is no longer having an entire day off to sit around read your Bible or go for long walks. Now, down-time may look a little different. It may involve getting up extra early to spend time in the Word. If you are sitting down to feed your baby, try to read the Bible and pray then. If you're in the car with the kids buckled in, turn on the audio Bible or pray. While the kids are napping, take a 10 minute nap yourself and then open the Bible. Look for ways of integrating your Sabbath rest into your routine with your kids by seeing down-time a little differently. Offering to take the kids for block of time every day (whether 30 minutes or two hours) is a great way for husbands to serve their wives (Husbands--hint, hint).

3. If you have kids with colic, this can be especially tough. Ask others for help. Whether it be family members, Life Group members, or other friends from church, ask for help. Ask someone you trust to watch your kids for a couple hours so that you can have some down time. Hey, even 30 minutes may seem like a week-long vacation when parenting a child with colic. Don't be afraid to ask for help. That's what the church--the body of Christ--is for. We're here to love on one another through each unique stage of life. Though, this can only happen if you're connected to the church. Make sure you stay connected through weekly worship, Life Group, and serving because that's how you stay connected with others and build valuable friendships that last.

The right thing is always the good thing.

Yes, that's correct! The right thing is always the good thing. In the sermon, I said, "Sometimes what may seem to be the correct thing is actually the wrong thing. We need to do the good thing." I also said: "The Pharisees held a false idea of doing the correct thing." What seems like the 'correct thing' in our world can miss the mark at times because we occasionally add extra expectations or requirements to what God expects. When we do this, what is considered culturally 'correct' is actually the wrong thing. As we saw in Mark 3:1-6, Jesus is telling us to do the good thing, which is (as you have indicated) always the right thing.

How do Saturday night services fit into the Sabbath?

As I mentioned in the sermon at North Main this past weekend, you can celebrate the Sabbath on a different day than Sunday, although it's common to celebrate the Sabbath on Sunday because of Jesus' resurrection and church tradition. Jesus never specifically indicated that the Sabbath needs to be celebrated on a Sunday. For some people, they have to work on Sunday, so Saturday evening allows them to celebrate the Sabbath with the body of Christ. That's one of the reasons we offer a Saturday evening service each week.

Two questions: 1. Does going out to eat on Sunday promote not following the Sabbath? Should this be a day that we don't use establishments to help promote our belief? 2. I own a business that according to my franchise agreement requires that I'm open on the Sabbath. Do you have any recommendations on how I should handle this situation moving forward?  

Good Questions!  Remembering that the Sabbath was made for man, it is not wrong to go out and eat as part of your ‘rest’.   And those who work in a restaurant may have no choice about Sunday work, but they can certainly pick another day or time to ‘rest’ in the Lord.  The Sabbath is an attitude not a particular day.  No one has to work 7 days a week, so a person required to work on a Sunday will have other options for celebrating the Sabbath.

Hi! What is Sean's last name? What role did he take? Where is the best place to learn about church staff and updates to these and other leadership changes? Thanks! 

His name is Shaun Meloy, and his official title is Worship Resource Director; one part of his job will be Worship Director at CR9.  You can find out about all of our staff at our website.  Since Shaun is new, he is not listed yet, but he will be on the website soon.