#15 - Rest That Restores: The Psychology and Spirituality of Sabbath

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Does it feel like exhaustion is your normal state

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of being? We rush, we push, we power through,

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and somewhere along the way, we forget how to

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truly rest. In episodes 7 and 8 of the podcast,

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I talked about being still before dying. So if

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this message resonates, you might want to go

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listen to those. You'll find them helpful too.

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But today... We're talking about a kind of rest

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that does more than recharge your body. This

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is about sacred rest that restores us spiritually

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and emotionally. Welcome to Mind and Faith Matters.

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I'm Dr. Cory Potter and I'm the host. Let's

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begin with a question. What if Sabbath is more

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than just a day off? I want to talk about two

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kinds of rest as we get going here. Rest comes

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in many forms, but for clarity I want to name

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two categories we'll be exploring today. The

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first is physical and emotional rest. The kind

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of rest that calms your nervous system, improves

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your sleep, and it clears your mind. Then there's

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Sabbath rest. A deep rhythm that reconnects you

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with God and reshapes your identity in Him. These

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aren't in competition with each other. They actually

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work beautifully together, but the distinctions

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matter. Sabbath is God's invitation for us to

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cease our striving and to be present, to take

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a break, to be with Him and to enjoy the great

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things He's given to us in our lives. The Hebrew

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word Shabbat means to stop or to cease. We first

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see it in Genesis 2 where God finishes creating

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the heavens and the earth and then rests on the

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seventh day. You know, it's not because God needed

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a break. In the book of Isaiah we're told in

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the Bible that God doesn't grow tired or weary.

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So his rest was intentional and he blessed the

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Sabbath. That day he made it holy. It became

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a rhythm for how Old Testament believers were

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to do life. It wasn't just a divine pause, but

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an invitation for people to live differently.

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In Exodus chapter 20, the idea is echoed. The

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Bible says remember the Sabbath day and keep

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it holy. On it you shall not do any work. This

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wasn't just about rules Although there were rules

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about it It was about creating space to trust

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to worship God and to reset Jesus affirms this

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in the New Testament in Mark chapter 2 verse

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27 when he says the Sabbath was made for man

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Not man for the Sabbath Sabbath isn't a burden.

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It's a gift a divine strategy for living this

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whole life. So before we go on, I want to talk

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about the science, just in general about rest.

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So when we're talking about physical and emotional

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rest and let's look at how rest impacts our minds

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and our bodies. We're therefore talking about

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physical and emotional restoration and what modern

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science reveals. First, Your brain needs space,

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it needs margin. When you're not focused on a

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task, your mind moves into something called the

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DMN, the default mode network. This is super

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cool. It activates when you reflect, imagine,

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or simply sit quietly. This DMN, or default mode

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network, helps you process emotions. create meaning

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in your life, consolidate your memories, and

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recover from mental overload. Those moments when

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you lie down and let your thoughts wander aren't

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wasted. They're essential. I wonder if you're

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making the room for those in your life. I know

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sometimes I don't, and sometimes I pay the price

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with health issues, headaches, and stress. But

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second, rest reduces emotional reactivity. When

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life is constant and loud, the brain's fear center,

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the amygdala, can stay in overdrive. And that

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will lead us into irritability, anxiety, and

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simply burnout. Rhythmic or regular rest gives

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your nervous system a chance to slow down and

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recover. It strengthens the parts of your brain

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responsible for self -regulation, for empathy,

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and for focus. And third, let's talk about the

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deep cleansing process of your brain during rest.

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In 2012, not so long ago, Dr. Macon Nettergaard

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discovered the glymphatic system. Not the lymphatic

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system, but the glymphatic system. And for those

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of you who are science geeky like I am, it's

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G -L -Y -M -P -H -A -T -I -C. This system helps

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clean up your brain. It's like a cleanup crew

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in your brain. It clears waste, including proteins

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linked to Alzheimer's, but it only turns on during

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deep, slow -wave sleep. So guess what that means?

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It means you need to get to that. And that level

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of rest comes when your nervous system is truly

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settled. So it's what you do during the day that

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can lead up to good rest that matters in getting

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good rest. So the quality of your stillness does

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matter. Not just how long you sleep, but whether

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your soul is allowed to pause and whether you

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actually give yourself emotional space to relax.

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Here's some simple practices that can restore

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that restoration. I'm not talking about Sabbath

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yet, but I'm going to get there soon. Here are

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a few gentle ways to support your mind and nervous

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system throughout the week. Sometimes just lie

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down without your phone and let your thoughts

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wander. Maybe you could watch how the sunlight

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shifts across the wall. Turn off your distractions

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and sit and quiet for a while. Unfortunately,

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that means if you take a walk when you're doing

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this support restoration, walk without music

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or the Mind and Faith Matters podcast or any

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podcast. Just be present. These practices help

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your body to reset. They create breathing room.

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And here's something fascinating. Anticipation

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of rest is healing too. Dr. Katie Wickall studied

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Sabbath practicing communities. She found that

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people didn't just benefit from Sabbath itself.

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Their stress was lowered throughout the week

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simply because they knew rest was coming. It

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looks like being excited about a vacation coming

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up. We all know that. feeling. The hope itself

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brings peace. Unfortunately, it also means sometimes

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when people are going to resign from a job and

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take on something new those last weeks when they

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put in their letter of resignation because they

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know rest is coming for a little bit and hope

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itself can bring peace. But here's what makes

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Sabbath rest different than just physical and

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emotional rest. Sleep heals your body, that's

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for sure. and Sabbath restores your soul. Physical

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rest improves your mood, but Sabbath re -centers

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your identity. Practicing a Sabbath is more than

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just slowing down. It's a sacred rhythm that

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reminds you of who you are and whose you are,

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meaning God's. It says your worth isn't measured

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by your productivity. But with Sabbath, you find

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that your root is rooted in the love of God.

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In Mark chapter 6, after a long stretch of ministry,

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Jesus tells his disciples, come with me by yourselves

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to a quiet place and get some rest. You see,

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this wasn't just downtime, it was communion.

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It was a spiritual reset for his disciples. The

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New Testament offers a new rhythm of Sabbath.

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Sabbath isn't stuck in the Old Testament. Jesus

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practiced it. It's mentioned so many times in

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the New Testament. But Jesus also healed on the

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Sabbath and challenged legalistic views of it.

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Paul writes in Romans and Colossians that we

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are not bound by calendar rules. In Hebrews chapter

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4 says, There remains a Sabbath rest for the

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people of God. This kind of rest is rooted in

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trust. It's not about checking boxes. It's about

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receiving God's presence. As Pastor John Piper

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put it, I think that the principle in the New

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Testament is that God ordains one day in seven

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be restful. I think that's a creation ordinance

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for our good, for our health. So Sabbath isn't

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a burden. It's like a breath in your week. A

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reminder to slow down, care for your soul, and

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experience God's kindness and grace. This is

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a good point to pause and consider. What is one

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thing you could stop doing for a few hours each

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week? Just to rest with God instead of working

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for him. Let's talk about why the soul needs

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Sabbath. There's a word in scripture we don't

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use as often, weariness. Not just tiredness,

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weariness of soul. It happens when you carry

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grief, pour yourself out without rest, or feel

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joy slipping further away from you. Isaiah chapter

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40 verse 29 says, he gives strength to the weary.

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And Jesus says in Matthew 11 verse 28, come to

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me all who are weary and burdened, and I will

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give you rest." That's the heart of Sabbath.

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It's not about performance. It's about healing.

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Especially when you feel like you've done everything

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and still can't catch your breath. It's when

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you sleep a lot of hours, a full eight hour night,

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and you just still don't feel at peace. And Piper

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also said, One of the things we should do is

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do things on the Lord's Day that refresh us for

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His service intellectually, physically, and spiritually.

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That image stays with me. Sabbath isn't withdrawal,

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it's restoration for service. It's helped me

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as a pastor and as counselor to rejuvenate and

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replenish my own soul. And it helps us return

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to the world grounded and ready to love and love

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well. Here's what Sabbath might look like today.

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You know, there's no need for a perfect formula.

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Sabbath is about presence. Here's some simple

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ideas. Read a Psalm, like Psalm 23. Share an

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unhurried meal with people that God's put in

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your life and just appreciate them for people

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that He's placed there. and what support they

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give to you. Attend worship, whether it's in

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person or online. Just be in that corporate worship

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and praise God. Sing, whether it's during that

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worship time or throughout your Sabbath. Pray

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and listen, of course. You should journal or

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reflect on God's faithfulness. I even say sitting

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by a window, and watching a shadow move, and

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just considering what it takes for that to happen,

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puts you in awe of God. Maybe you should take

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a quiet walk and let beauty interrupt you. But

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here's the question, what kind of rest draws

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you closer to God? Not just away from work, but

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toward His presence. You can also practice creative

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Sabbath. Sketch. Paint. I find that if I'm not

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focused on catching the fish or seeing something

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in particular and I go out and kayak or camp

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and just get in nature. It's so impactful for

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me. I feel restored, rejuvenated, and can just

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appreciate God and see his connections in nature.

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It expresses so much to me. For my 25th wedding

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anniversary, Sue and I went to the northern Georgia

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mountains and we found a cabin that had this

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back deck covered porch. and it overlooked a

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white water stream that had that powerful sound

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and beauty of the water just roaring down the

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mountain through the trees. I don't know if I'd

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ever do anything else if I lived there, but that

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week I felt such creativity from God and I felt

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so connected and ready just to plug back into

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the world. But let me close with this word. for

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you. It's about giving yourself grace. You are

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more than your output or your productivity. You

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don't have to prove your worth. You are loved

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even when you stop. Stop performing, stop doing.

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Sabbath reminds you of that every single week.

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It doesn't just reset your schedule, it restores

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your soul. And remember, Jesus doesn't only meet

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you on a quiet Sunday morning. He's offering

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rest on Monday too. In the chaos, in the grief,

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and in the joy that still feels unfinished. His

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invitation in Matthew 11 is not tied to a date.

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It's ongoing. Come to me and I will give you

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rest. Sabbath helps us. keep saying yes. What

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would it look like to accept Jesus' invitation

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to rest right where you are, exactly as you are

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today? What would your life look like if you

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took a regular time of Sabbath and spent some

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time doing whatever that is that brings you closer

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to God? Until next time, I want you to take care

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of your mind, nourish your faith, and give yourself

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space to simply be. If this episode spoke to

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you, share it with someone who could use a moment

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of rest. You can find more resources at mindandfaithmatters

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.com. Look for the new helpful resources tab

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at the top that gives you places to check out

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online therapy and counseling. important national

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hotlines, and I also want you to see that I've

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separated out the companion resource guides for

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each episode. Check it out at mindandfaithmatters

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.com. Until next week, God bless.