Sabbath

For the past four weeks I have been training for my first half ironman. In case you don't know, a half ironman is a triathlon in which you swim 1.2 miles, ride 56 miles, and then run 13.1 miles. I've done some shorter triathlons, and I figured it was time to move up a little and challenge myself with something longer. Now, truth be told, I suppose you could say that my training started months ago. For months I have been swimming, biking, and running, but it wasn't until four weeks ago that my specific race training started.

According to my training plan last week was a rest week. Now that doesn't mean that I didn't train, but it dead mean that my distances were shorter and my efforts easier. I cannot tell you how refreshing that was. Really, my rest week was essential. After my first three weeks of training I was tired and I could feel it. I needed a break to re-energize myself and remind myself why I am doing what I'm doing. My body also needed this break so that I did not find myself injured and unable to race in two months. When it comes to training, rest is essential. In fact, there are many who would argue that rest is the most important part of training because without it you never give your body an opportunity to actually grow stronger.

Taking a rest week made me think about Sabbath. When I was a kid Sabbath was just another name for Sunday. It meant we went to church, we didn't go shopping, and we were forced to take a nap. Actually, that's what I thought Sabbath was for most of my life. But I've come to realize that Sabbath is about so much more than just that. I still go to church on Sundays (as a pastor that's kind of important), I don't often go shopping, and I now force my son to take a nap, but for me Sabbath has become, and is becoming so much more.

Sabbath reminds us that we don't cause the world to spin round. Sabbath reminds us that for all that we do, our worth does not come from what we accomplish, but from whom we are. In Scripture it says that people were not created for the Sabbath, but rather, that the Sabbath was created for people. You see, just as in swimming, biking, and running, we all need those times to re-energize, to remind ourselves what we are doing, and to allow ourselves to grow in light of where we've been.

Now, in talking about Sabbath I also must say that as a pastor my Sabbath does not come on Sunday. But I do work hard to keep my day off. It's easy to take a day off. It's a little harder to practice Sabbath. I'm working to allow my day off to be a time of rest. Really, I think rest is recreation. That doesn't mean I must sit around and do nothing, but through a change of pace and time with my family and God I can allow God to shape me into more of the person God wants me to be. Not a bad result for taking a break.