The Best of The Best

We've been talking about what Sabbath isn't.
It's not a day of nothing. It's not a day of relaxing in an any-old-way-we-want fashion.  Nor is it a day to catch up on what didn't get done during the week.  Rather,  Sabbath is the day when we're invited to enjoy the pleasures of the Kingdom in all their fullness, even while waiting for God's kingdom to fully come.  It's experiencing the joy of full creation, the rest of completeness in Christ.

Last week I suggested a few ways to make room for Sabbath.  How did it go? What did you try?

I failed to prep a meal,  but we did use paper plates. My DH was perplexed. "It's Sabbath," I said.
"Yeah?" He didn't get it.
"I'm trying to avoid some of the work I normally do,  so I can enjoy Sabbath."
"Oh...well its just two plates..."
"Yeah..."
"Not much of a difference."
"You know, if we were Orthodox, I wouldn't be able to make meals on the Sabbath."
"Hmmm," he said,  eyeing his homemade not-what-he-wanted tuna wrap. "Could you heat things up?"
"I don't know."
"So we'd have to eat out," DH concludes, suddenly a cheerleader of my Sabbath observance.

Later, as I'm rinsing a few dishes (because there's not paper EVERYTHING):
"I thought you weren't going to do that! It's Sabbath! You don't have to, you know."
I cringed.  Dishes waiting until Monday? I rinsed what was there,  then grabbed our camping dish tub (which I've been using for dishes during the day - we're in a drought, gals), added an inch of hot water and a little soap where Sunday's dirty glasses would wait for Monday morning.  Ahh! A little piece of Sabbath! Not perfect, but still a good piece.

So we've got our DON'Ts or SHOULDN'Ts.  What about our DOs?

Well...there's a Genesis answer and a Gospel answer. 

Let's start at the beginning:

In Genesis, God invites man into his Sabbath rest post-creation. There is still lots of work to do. Adam and Eve need to get to know one another, have a date night, learn their love languages, make some babies. Work, work, work! The garden needs tending. Seedlings need prodding, fruit needs picking, animals need naming. More work! Despite all that's waiting to be done, God rests and invites created man to do the same. He invites them to enjoy all the goods.

The first thing we're invited to DO on Sabbath, is enjoy the good.

There's so much bad. There's BIG bad: ISIS, rumors of war, Ebola, poverty, hunger, and more. There's the DAILY BAD too, the bad that pervades our anyday lives: miscommunication between spouses/kids/friends, stuff that breaks like cars/bones/coffeemakers, greed in coworkers and kids (ahem!  me?). Then, of course, there's OUR OWN AWFUL BAD: gluttony, lust, pride, unforgiveness, a bitter and embrassaing internal tally.

Whew! That's alot of bad! And until eternity - it's inescapable.  Or so we often think.  God invites us to escape it every week, granting us a whole day to just enjoy the good.

Day to day is filled with sin and brokenness. 
SABBATHS SHOULD BE STUFFED WITH ALL THE GOOD THEY CAN CONTAIN.

Sabbath is the day for the best food, the best wine, the best sex, the best literature, the best art, the best of our relationships, the best of who we are.  Enjoying God's goodness is the labor of Sabbath.

Maybe the family pitches in for a dinner you all agree is delicious - a family fave.  Maybe you uncork a great bottle of wine with friends.  Enjoy unhurried sex.  Guiltlessly read that great book that's been gathering dust on your nightstand.  Get a family puzzle going and enjoy the good of your household. Use the china instead of paper plates if that's the good God has given you to enjoy. Go for a bike ride, watch the kids catch some great waves.

This, I think,  is where we urbanites have a little advantage. If we were countryside people, Sabbath would probably include walks through knee high grass, climbing trees, or picnics in the backyard.  That all sounds great, but not only can we enjoy nature (though it may take a bit of effort to find some), we have so much created goodness within arms reach.

In our busy metro lives, Sunday is a one of the few days where it won't take forever to drive somewhere. You actually can drive to the neighborhood of that new gastropub and get there by mealtime.  The good friends you never get to see can make it across town for dinner.  Shop for just-picked veggies at the farmer's market.  Lay on the Getty lawn for a quick snooze between paintings. Yay! Urbanites rejoice! There is A LOT of good to enjoy in this city.

What will you do this Sunday, this Sabbath, to enjoy all that is good?