Foundations make sure structures stand up well, if the foundation and what was built upon it were built well. My home has a concrete slab foundation under two rooms, and the rest of the house sits on post and pier units. During the 6.9 magnitude Loma Prieta quake 20 years ago, there was no damage to the home, so it was built well enough (Yes, we have been in the house that long!)

Foundations work in a similar way in our spiritual lives. This is why at our Fall Retreat I addressed two key concepts: 1) Sabbath and 2) the Bible’s context of Covenant and Kingdom. Both are foundations for life and for church community. If we build these things well, we will enjoy better rest and clearer focus in God’s call upon our lives. We will stand strong against the forces that would batter us.

Two weekends have passed since retreat and more of you tried observing a day of Sabbath rest. What do you think? It’s very, well, restful, yes? Are you surprised by how restored you are in body and mind by spending a day, or even just an evening, doing no work or other form of task accomplishment? Likely, you found setting aside the time challenging, too? For “some reason…” your lives were simply busy and issues of work or other needs would intrude into your planned time of rest, blah, blah, blah. O! How we all know that routine well! Be encouraged! Until the pattern of rest and your intention to follow-through is more strongly formed in you, this will keep happening. Take heart and don’t give up-the end result of a regular day of rest will be well worth it to your heart, mind, soul, as well as family & friendships.

Remember, just start with something. Do not be intimidated by the idea of one day of no work. Start with just an evening. I suggest a Friday or Saturday evening (better if you will participate in worship on Sunday). Let that evening be uninterrupted by work. Do things that you enjoy as restful-a meal, playing a game with family or friends, singing, prayer and reading. Go to be earlier than usual. Remember that Genesis 1 reveals a created pattern in which the day begins with evening. Yes! The day begins at sunset– with rest, not with rising for work at sunrise. “Hmm?” you say? Read it. “There was evening and morning, the first day,” and so on. So, here is a phrase I want you to remember: Work from rest, don’t rest from work. “Huh?” you ask?

When we begin the day with the quieting activities of evening and sleep-we rise from that rest ready, refreshed and able to work. We “work from rest,” meaning, work comes from a physical and spiritual place of “restedness” (forgive me if I just made up a word). If, on the other hand we consider that our day begins when we rise, we easily fall prey to the pattern of robbing the beginning of our day (the evening!) by staying up later to get more things done. We squeeze more work into life’s day, and then try to catch up somehow with less sleep! In just a few days, we rise tired each day. If that pattern takes hold, our evenings and sleep become attempts to recover (rest) from work. This ‘recovery time’ comes at the “end” of our day, which is how we think of evening. This is how we live culturally. Me, you, and nearly everyone I know fall into this trap.

We can change it. We need a perspective shift. We just need to obey the command, “Keep the Sabbath Day.”