There is often an inciting incident that slows us down and calls us to sabbath, whether we recognize it or not. It’s something that knocks us off our track, a signal to stress less – or else – and to depend upon something that transcends us. But we don’t need a crisis to get into this club.
But there’s no need to wait until the string quartet accompanies our sinking Titanic. Getting to the crux of sabbath will rescue us before we drown.
I know that I can’t tend to the sacred garden within and around me without stepping out of everyday life. I’m a big fan of “sabbath moments,” which are sacred glimpses in regular time – like a rainbow on a Thursday afternoon or a conversation with a close friend. Sabbath moments were a good place to start. Once I felt ready to stretch those moments into an hour, an afternoon, or a day, I did. I put my phone away. I napped. I attended worship. I walked slowly in nature. I read. I meditated. I prayed. Most of all, I practiced humility: I am not the Creator; this world will not fall apart without me.
This message is excerpted from “Slowing down for sabbath’s sake” by J. Dana Trent in the July 2019 Café online magazine.
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