Sabbath Rest

Series: First Things First

Leslie Basham: Which do you consider more important? Working or resting? It's August 23, and you are listening to Revive Our Hearts with Nancy Leigh DeMoss.

Do you think of rest as a luxury? Is rest only for the weak-willed or for Sunday only? Today, we'll find out why Sabbath rest is a key component to a priority driven life. Here's Nancy.

Nancy DeMoss: Over the past two weeks we've been looking at this matter of priorities--ordering our time, our lives, our schedule according to the will of God. And hasn't this been a practical help as we've been thinking through these things? I know it's been a huge help to me. And I have to say, a huge source of conviction, as many times the things I'm saying in these sessions are coming back to haunt me as I seek to order my day according to the principles of God's Word.

We've been looking at the letters in the word priorities. And let's just do a quick review of what we've learned.

First, the letter "p"--pray, ask God for wisdom.

The letter "r"--review God's priorities for your life. Ask God to show you from His Word for this season of life what are the big things, the important things, the first things that you need to put first.

And then the letter "i"--take inventory. Evaluate what you're doing with your time. Evaluate your "to-do" list. Determine which things on there need to be eliminated because they don't fall under God's priorities for your life at this season.

And then the letter "o." Order your daily schedule, your weekly schedule according to God's priorities for your life. Choose your priorities and then live your life by them.

Now, I know I'm making this sound very simple. And I know when we leave this room and have to go out into what we're facing in the rest of this day, that's when it gets challenging. For that's when we need to come back and remember: am I ordering my schedule according to God's priorities for my life?

The letter "r"--resist the tyranny of the urgent. Ask God to show you the things that are truly important, the things that really need to be done in your day, in your week, in your home and not just the things that are clamoring for your attention that may not be actually important. They may be urgent, but they may not be important.

And then the letter "i"--get input from others. Ask your husband, what are his priorities? What are his priorities for your family? And ask him to help you determine with your list of responsibilities what are the priorities that you should be accepting in that time of your life.

And then, by the way, don't accept other priorities added on to your existing list until you've checked with the Lord and if you're married, check with your husband. Don't let things be added on until you've made sure you've cleared it with the powers that be--the Lord and any authority that God has put in your life.

And then "t"--take advantage of the time God gives you. Ephesians says we are to redeem the time; that we are to make the most of every opportunity. So as you have little bits of time, here and there, perhaps while you are waiting for something--you're waiting in line or you're waiting at a doctor's appointment. Use that time to fill in the cracks with some of the little things that maybe you wouldn't get to otherwise. Redeem the time.

Then yesterday, we talked about two things. The letter "i"--identify time robbers or the things that are stealing time from your life that you need to simplify and eliminate.

And then we said the letter "e"--experience this season of life fully. Whatever you do, do with all your heart. If it's the time to work, work hard. If it's the time to celebrate, celebrate hard. If it's the time to play, play hard. But be all there. Enter into this season and this moment of life fully.

Now, today we come to the last letter in the word "priorities"-the letter "s." And I couldn't resist. I've got to give you two "s-es" to complete this study of insights on ordering our priorities.

The first is the word "Sabbaths." "Sabbaths." By this, I mean it's important that we take periodic time outs, time out to get refreshed, to reflect, to evaluate where we are, to reprioritize as needed, to make adjustments in our schedules. As we look at the Old Testament, we see that God has made provision for Sabbaths in our lives. God told the Children of Israel that they should take one day every week, one day out of seven as a Sabbath, consecrated to the Lord.

The Sabbath day is a gift. It is a gift that He, God, gives us to help us keep our priorities ordered. But I suggest that even before that one day in a week that you look for time in each day to set apart--it may just be a few minutes here and there--but to stop to think about what you're doing. Think about the decisions you are making. Just stop and take stock. Regain your perspective on a daily basis, on a weekly basis and then periodically throughout the year. That's what holidays are supposed to be about.

Really that word comes from the term, "holy" days, which comes from the Old Testament, "feast" days. Three times a year, for example, all the Jewish men were to go to Jerusalem and take time out for a holy day, a feast day. There were different purposes for those days. But one of them was just to have time to breathe in the cycle of life and to evaluate, to make sure you're rightly connected to God and to make sure that you're rightly fulfilling His agenda for your life.

Look at the times in the Gospels when Jesus would go on boat rides; when He would take long walks. I think the fact today that we can get to everywhere so quickly is not always good for our souls. We need to take time as we have opportunity. And then when we come to those days or the seasons of life where it's so full, we will have stored up a reservoir of grace for those periods.

Now don't let it be too long in between taking time for these Sabbaths. And it may be just a few minutes here and there--a few minutes of quiet in your car. Don't just jump into your car and all of a sudden push a tape in or all of a sudden turn the radio on. Maybe you need a few minutes of quiet. You may find that you don't need as much alone time as you think you do. If you'll take advantage of the few minutes you do have, when you have them. Being in the center of God's will is really what is really refreshing.

Hudson Taylor, the great missionary to China, came to a season of life where it was said that he had four times the amount of work that he could do. And at this particular season of life, he had dysentery; he had multiple projects. One of the workers on the field had been called home so he had to do that man's job, he had deadlines pressing in on him.

But one writer says that at the end of the day which was sometimes at two or three in the morning, Hudson Taylor would sit down at his little harmonium, his little portable organ; and he would play his favorite hymns. And often the one he would play would be "Jesus, I Am Resting."

Resting in the joy of what Thou art.
I am finding out the greatness of Thy loving heart."

In his little booklet, Tyranny of the Urgent, Charles Hummel says that if the Christian is too busy to stop, take spiritual inventory and receive his assignments from God, he becomes a slave to the tyranny of the urgent. He may work day and night to achieve much that seems significant to himself and others. But he will not finish the work God has given him to do. So, ask the Lord to show you how to take Sabbaths; Sabbath breaks during the day, during the week, and during the course of your year.

Now let me give you just one other "s." And I think this so important. And that is that we stay sensitive and surrendered to the spirit of God. Let God direct your day. If you are His and you have committed yourself to Him, then the Scriptures says "my times are in Your hands." He's the one who controls the times and the seasons. God's never in a hurry. He's never late. He's always on time.

So ask the Lord at the start of your day, to direct your day, to order your steps. And then throughout the day, be listening--not for an audible voice but for the Spirit speaking within your heart. Here's an interruption you need to avoid. This is just a distraction. But at another point He may say, Here's someone that I've brought into your path. And I want you to take time for that individual or that project that wasn't on your to-do list for the day.

The Lord really can be trusted. Trust Him in relation to the interruptions. Trust Him in relation to the opportunities. And yield yourself to Him. If there is something that I find most of us as women need today, it's a spirit of rest. And I don't think it's so much physical rest that we need many times, although you may be at a season in your life where you do need physical rest. Maybe you're nursing an infant or you're giving round -the-clock care to an elderly parent. And there are some times that are just physically weary times.

But more often than not, it's rest in our souls that we are lacking. It's rest in our spirit. And that's why we need to be sensitive to the Spirit of God--attuned to Him, surrendered to Him, yielded to Him and then resting in Him.

If we will live according to God's priorities and His agenda for our lives, that doesn't mean that our days will never be hectic. It doesn't mean that there won't be more to do in the day than we can do. We'd like them to be that way, but God wants to keep us in a place where we need Him. And there will be times where it's not easy to figure out what are God's priorities for me for this moment. But even when it's difficult, you need to look to Him and say, "Lord, show me your ways. Teach me your paths. Guide me in your truth and teach for you are God my Savior and hope is in You all day long.

And then we can come to the end of our lives and we can say as Jesus did, "Oh, Father, I have glorified You here on the earth. I have finished the work that You gave me to do."

Leslie Basham: If we want to say those words at the end of our lives, we need to be purposeful in the way we spend each day. Nancy DeMoss has been giving us biblical advice on the way we spend our time and she'll be right back to pray with us.

As you begin to take stock of your priorities, you may want some extra help. We recommend a book called Having a Mary Heart In a Martha World. Are you more like Martha?--constantly rushing and trying to serve others. Or are you more like Mary?--relaxed and enjoying the presence of others? Joanna Weaver will help you find a balance. Her book will show you how restful intimacy with God will lead you into joyful service. You can get more information by calling us at 1-800-569-5959.  Or visit us at www.ReviveOurHearts.comYou can also reach us by mail at Revive Our Hearts. We'd enjoy hearing your thoughts on this series on priorities. And if you are able to send a donation at this time, we'd like to say thank you with a booklet that coincides with the series. The title is Making the Most of Your Time, and it is yours with a gift of any size.

We hope you can be here next week. We'll find out that children are a high priority to God. And you'll be challenged to think through how high a priority children are to you. And now, here's Nancy to seal this series with a prayer.

Nancy DeMoss: Father, our heart's cry, our heart's desire is to be able to look to You at the end of our lives and to say that we have glorified You here on the earth and that we have finished the work that You gave us to do. So, Lord, in this moment, this season of life, show us how to order our steps according to Your Word. And may our lives testify to the peace and the order of the Christ who lives within us. And may we not live those frazzled, frenzied, harried lives that we are so prone to fall into. So, help us, Lord, to live according to priorities, Your priorities for our lives. May our lives bring glory to You. For Jesus' sake, I pray it. Amen.

Revive Our Hearts with Nancy DeMoss is a ministry partnership of Life Action Ministries.

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