Planning for a Sabbath

~ "Sabbath" Part 2

Here are some practical ways for planning a Sabbath that have really helped me.

1. Focus on the principle, not the law. The important thing is that I set aside Sabbath time and that I do it regularly.
   
2. Identify what demands and dictates my time, then plan how to set boundaries around those.
   
3. Pick a day that works for me, and plan to say "No" to the things that will try to infringe on it. "Things" always try.
   
4. Write it on my calendar/planner, and cross out that day as "reserved".
   
5. I have to set boundaries like: don't even turn on my computer (it sucks me in), don't answer any non-immediate family phone calls (they lead to work), and stay home when possible (unless I'm going somewhere I consider peaceful)
   
6. Make arrangements for the time: you might have to do it on a Saturday, swap childcare with a friend, or take a day off of work.
   
7. Take Sabbath time as regularly as I can. A monthly Sabbath works well for me.
   
8. Be sure to tell key people in your life that you are taking Sabbath time and when. If you are married, your husband can help to guard your time. If you have children, they will learn from your example, and they will feel invested in how your Sabbath time went. Trust me, they ask, "How was your Sabbath?"
   
9. If I can't carve out a whole day, then make the most of a ½ Sabbath … a morning or afternoon. This January, I enjoyed a refreshing 3 hours of Sabbath, and it was a lifesaver. When I had two kids in school, I would do a Sabbath from 8 am – 3 pm.
   
10. Don't be alarmed if you feel like you don't know what to do at first … it takes practice to "pause well."
    

Now get out your calendar and schedule your first Sabbath. Expect that you will feel refreshed and refilled after quiet time with the Lord. Expect to enjoy new perspective on your regular days. And expect to have new energy to do what God has planned for you next. Tomorrow, I'll share some ideas about what to do during Sabbath time.