A few years ago Pastor Scott Tischler asked whether I had seen the video series, The Blessed Life by Pastor Robert Morris. Scott said it was the best resource he had ever seen about the biblical principles of tithing and that many churches found the teaching series transformational. Therefore, I bought the book version of The Blessed Life and its sequel, Beyond Blessed, (Click either title to go directly to my review and summary of each book.) I have to agree. These are two of the best books I have ever read about financial giving. In much the same way, Robert Morris brings his straightforward use of scripture and clear logic to the subject of the Sabbath in his book, Take the Day Off: Receiving God’s Gift of Rest ($12.99 for the Kindle edition on Amazon). Morris writes, “Observing the Sabbath is the primary way we put God first with our time.” He goes on to insist that serious consequences occur if we fail to “set aside and protect one day out of seven and devote it to rest and fellowship with God.”
Keeping The Sabbath Is On God’s Top Ten List.
Morris wryly observes Christians heartily endorse keeping the Ten Commandments, but somehow seem to feel there is an exception for number four, “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy” (Exodus 20:8). However, after personally hitting the wall and coming close to an emotional breakdown, Morris came to realize “You can’t break . . . (God’s) principles. You can only break yourself upon them.” Therefore, he takes the commandment to set aside one day a week for rest as seriously as he takes the principles of tithing. Under Old Testament law, breaking the Sabbath incurred the death penalty. Morris writes:
The reason God created harsh penalties for profaning the Sabbath under the Old Covenant was . . . He knew we weren’t built to run seven days a week, week after week. We break down. We end up running on empty . . . That’s simply not sustainable. In a sense, a lifestyle of ignoring the principle of the Sabbath still carries the death penalty! It’s slow suicide. (Emphasis added.)
Not Legalism, But Blessing
The Pharisees had it backwards. They thought people should keep the Sabbath strictly as a matter of law and duty. However, God had something very different in mind. “The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath” (Mark 2:27). God intends keeping the Sabbath to be a means of enhancing our health, our benefit, our blessing – even our delight!
Key Principles And Practical Application:
- The principle of the Sabbath is to set aside and protect one day out of seven and devote it to rest and fellowship with God. However it isn’t essential this special day be Saturday or Sunday. Sundays and weekends are often work days for a minister. Therefore, another day will do just fine. For example, Morris uses Monday as his Sabbath.
- Fear must be resisted. Fallen culture and the enemy of our soul will try to make us worry about falling behind, not getting everything done, not getting promoted or recognized, disappointing people, being viewed as lazy, etc. We must resist this fear.
- Faith is required. Just as tithing involves believing we fare far better with 90% of our income with God’s blessing on it than 100% without His blessing, “Embracing God’s principle of the Sabbath by unplugging for a day invites His supernatural blessing on your remaining six days. God can accomplish far more in six days that carry God’s supernatural blessing than you can in seven without it.”
- It’s OK to take care of emergencies. If you have a true emergency, take care of it. “Jesus said: If your donkey or ox falls in a ditch on the Sabbath, help it out!” However, Morris also adds, “But if your ox falls in a ditch every week, you’re a bad manager . . . put some better processes in place so you can rest one day a week!”
- Your objective in the Sabbath is rest. “Not excitement. Not entertainment. And certainly not productivity . . . your Sabbath is not a time for advancing your personal goals. ‘Achievement’ is for the other six days each week. This day is about enjoyment, delight, and renewal.” In particular, you want to spend the day in ways that will recharge and refill your spiritual, physical, emotional, and mental “fuel tanks.”
- Spiritual: “Taking time to be alone and still with God isn’t a gift to Him. It’s a gift to yourself – a very necessary gift.”
- Physical: “When we start talking about taking care of ourselves physically, diet and exercise are the twin pillars of that conversation. Yet there is a third element to physical well-being that goes largely overlooked: rest. There is simply no way to recharge your physical tank without rest.” (Emphasis added.)
- Emotional: “The primary fuel for your emotional tank is something the Bible calls joy . . . Far too many of us have allowed stress, time pressure, cares, people-pleasing, etc. to crowd out every last measure of joy from our lives.” Therefore, it is important to do the kinds of restful activities that replenish and refill your emotional fuel tank with joy. (Emphasis added.)
- Mental: When Morris reads, he reads “. . . things that interest me – things that have no direct relationship to or impact on my workday responsibilities.” In addition, he finds mental refreshment in watching funny movies. “I’ll admit it. I like watching movies that make me laugh. It’s just one of the things that fills my mental tank. Of course, I follow my conscience on inappropriate content. I don’t watch anything that defiles my conscience.”
Practical Advice About Sabbaticals
A full chapter is devoted to the principles and practical considerations involved in taking a periodic Sabbatical. Morris’ church has a standing policy that all staff pastors are given a six-week sabbatical following every seven years of service. The principle is “periodic extended breaks from being ‘productive’ can have a powerful restorative effect on body, soul, and spirit—just as a season of rest can restore the soil of a farm.” Morris writes,
A sabbatical is more than a vacation. It’s really a series of Sabbath days strung together. A sabbatical is an extended period of quiet, stillness, rest, reflection, prayer, and fellowship with God and His Word. It’s a string of days in which we do pretty much nothing, and do it with both intentionality and expectancy.
I read a lot. However, I have found a scarcity of helpful practical advice about planning and executing a truly beneficial and restorative sabbatical. This book is my most helpful read so far when it comes to planning a sabbatical. It includes a list of “eighteen keys to experiencing a successful sabbatical” plus a section with advice for having a joint marriage-enrichment sabbatical with your spouse.
I Highly Recommend This Book
I started out by listening to Robert Morris’ sermon “Take The Day Off” on the Gateway church website. Next, I bought the book and read it through. Finally, I purchased the unabridged audio book and listened to it (along with my wife) as we made a recent trip to and from Arkansas. I have already been personally blessed as the result of making a good-faith effort to actually observe a real Sabbath every week. I feel a real difference. In addition, I’m using lots of Morris’ advice in this book as I plan my second sabbatical in 40+ years of ministry. I am truly excited about the thought of rest, refreshment, renewal, and a new season of fruitful ministry in the days ahead. Therefore, along with Robert Morris, let me encourage you to truly “Take The Day Off!”