What in the world does the Sabbath have to do with living bold? Good question.

Living Bold requires a ton of energy. You can’t do this without rest. Going to church on Sunday isn’t Sabbath. Going to church on Sunday is an intentional act of worship and honor to God. Sabbath is what happens when you’re still and focused on God’s grace that got you this far. What works is that our culture slows down a little bit on Sunday which gives us a chance to “Sabbath”.

As men, we find ourselves constantly under pressure to perform well for our jobs, our families, our friends, our community, and all other causes and actions that find us. At the very basic core of our lives, we wake up – go to work – come home – work around the house – sleep and repeat. You’re tired. I’m tired.

Some of us have physically demanding jobs that require sweat and brawn every day – you go home exhausted. Some of us, spend our days solving 1,000 problems, deciding what is and isn’t a pressing issue, and directing teams of employees – you go home mentally spent. For a select few, the day is easy, the pressures are minimal, the sweat is bearable – you go home wondering if this is what life is about… bored.

In order to put your life in order and begin a strong stance of Living Bold… you need energy. You need focus… and you need purpose. Without any of these, you’re useless to yourself and God barely gets a leftover. God knows this.

At the conclusion of creation (a slightly more demanding job than yours) God said…”I like it – now it’s time to create the last day… a day of rest just for my children to enjoy all that I have given them. So I will create a “stop day” for my children. I’ll make it a time for them to release the grip of the tools and a time to stop turning the soil”. Men…God designed us to work… and he made us to long for rest. On the 7th day, God created for us a time to reflect, relax, and give thanks to Him for the opportunity to do those things we do on a daily basis. Take creation actual or figurative… the model still holds true. The master plan is work, but also rest.

Religion has convinced us that Sunday (or Saturday) is the Sabbath day and that we must observe the day in a commonly acceptable practice for it to “count”. Wrong. It’s important to note that Religion is man-made where faith is God made (God did not create religion and the Bible doesn’t establish – religion). As men in the christian culture, we are told that we have to go worship God a certain way or we are not “part of the church”. I personally know some pretty wicked people that attend church regularly, and I know some really authentically Christian men who barely darken the door. Almost unaware, our church culture has told us that the good man who follows God in private and doesn’t attend church is… “lost”. All the while, we turn the reigns of our faithful gatherings over to some pretty devious people just inside the doors of the church. Chew on that for a bit.

Now soak this up:The Sabbath actually means “cessation” or “stop day”. For the die-hard religious crowd I have a question for you… What named day of the week did God start and stop creation? You don’t know do you? I didn’t think so. (neither do I). What we do know is that the importance should never be placed on a day… rather a willing choice to follow God’s lead.

Did you realize that scripture tells us that the Sabbath was created for man… not for God? God gave us this gift, and we’ve shoved it back in His face and said… no thanks – I don’t need it – I’m good. In American Culture, Sunday is a common stop day. When I was a young boy, I recall that the working world used to shut down on Sunday where just a few worked… these days work just keeps on rolling. For some employers it’s seen as a “catch up” day where extra hours can be squeezed out of their workers.

Do you work on Sunday? If so… when is your “stop day”?

So if God ordained the Sabbath for a time of rest and reflection on God’s grace in our lives, how do you rest? Or do you?

Here’s the bottom line on Sabbath. Go find your rest. Get away. Unplug… and reflect on God’s hand in your life. In this, your soul will be free to be in awe of God and His goodness in your life. Talk to him about the bad crap going on, and sit still for a little bit. He will talk to you. (I’ll tell you how later)

If your batteries aren’t charged, you can be of no use to your family, your faith, and your community. Men, we’ve been robbed of this day and we stay tired. Why do older men find comfort, peace, and contentment in later in life? They are less busy, they rest more, and they understand the importance of balance.

As a young man, you better listen to the wisdom of the grandfathers and wise elders around you. And young means anybody who isn’t decrepid. They say, “I wish I would have spent more time with my kids”. “I wish I wouldn’t have worked so much to make a life instead of living it”.

To sum up: Living Bold requires energy. Without rest, the whole idea of standing firm in faith is a joke. Without rest, it takes one little hardship and you are sunk! Evil will toss you around like a chew toy and laugh you out of the arena. Guys… evil is real … and it will kill you. Don’t play if you don’t have the energy.

The Sabbath is God’s gift to you to recharge, refuel, and re-order your priorities. Sabbath gives you the fuel to put up with the bull crap of this life. Ritual has very little to do with Sabbath. Living Bold starts with resting in who God made you to be.

Now… we tackle the idea that church isn’t where you go, but who we are.

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(You are reading the blog series by Live Bold. This is a living, unedited book being written in the wide open. Follow along. If you’re getting here late, go back to the archives under the LB NOW category and start reading. Each entry is numbered in sequence. Comments are welcome and some will end up in the final published book. May God’s hand be in all we do here at Live Bold)
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