rivendell

Rivendell, an Elven realm in J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings trilogy, is a beautiful haven of rest – a place protected from the dangers plaguing Middle Earth. In The Fellowship of the Ring, Tolkien describes the peace that Frodo and his companions experience in Rivendell after narrowly escaping the evil forces bent on destroying them. In Rivendell, 

The future, good or ill, was not forgotten, but ceased to have any power over the present.

Tolkien’s description captures something of the essence of Sabbath. When we practice Sabbath, whether it’s setting aside a full day or part of a day each week, we experience rest and peace amidst the rigors of life. In his book, The Rest of God, Mark Buchanan says we experience Sabbath when we stop doing what is necessary and do that which gives life. Life’s obligations and challenges don’t go away, but practicing Sabbath gives us a break from them and affords us the space to replenish ourselves and refocus on God and His priorities.

The Bible clearly teaches the importance of observing a Sabbath day of rest. God, Himself, rested after His creation work (Genesis 2:3). Did He need to rest? No. But by resting, God set an example for His human creation—the ones He made in His image—so that we would live maximum lives in keeping with His design for us.

Walter Brueggemann, in Reverberations of Faith, said:

Sabbath provides a visible testimony that God is at the center of life—that human production and consumption take place in a world ordered, blessed, and restrained by the God of all creation.

Practicing Sabbath is an acknowledgment that God is in control and that we trust Him to look after His creation (including us) as we rest. For those of us who struggle with workaholic tendencies, taking a daylong break from what is necessary breaks us free from our compulsion to engage in excessive work activities. Sometimes, we are motivated to work excessively because we believe we have financial needs. Other times, we simply work too much because we want more of things we don’t necessarily need. In both cases, taking a day off will help us to refocus on God as the One who provides and to realign our priorities in keeping with His desires.