Sabbath Rhythms (Daily Encouragement)
It is in vain that you rise up early and go late to rest, eating the bread of anxious toil; for he gives to his beloved sleep. – Psalm 127:2
In Psalm 127 we see a healthy pattern of work and rest. This takes intentionality and practical decisions to live out this pattern and work from a position of rest. From Sabbath Rhythms:
Living a life of gospel intentionality is to allow the King of all creation to be Lord of your calendar. It begins with by establishing Sabbath rhythms. Think through your daily, weekly, trimester and annual rhythms.
- Daily Rhythms: Divide your day into modules (4 hour periods). What are peak energy times for you to do your most important work? What time will you go to bed? Get up? What are priority times for your family that you need to guard? I do my best thinking in the morning so I schedule more meetings / admin work in the afternoon.
Module One: 9:00am – 1:00pm
Module Two: 1:00pm – 5:00pm
Module Three: 5:00pm – 9:00pm
- Weekly Rhythms: shape your weekly rhythms around your priorities and energy peaks. For example, Monday is a recovery day for me so I do administrative work. Have guidelines to adhere to. Questions to consider ::
- What unique circumstances do you have that you need to plan around?
- What are the most important times/things in your week that you need to guard?
- What are the maximum nights a week you will work?
- What day will be your sabbath?
- When will you get a date with your spouse weekly?
- How many meals will you eat together as a family?
- How many meals will you eat with others in community?
- How will you participate in biblical community (community group)?
- How often and when will you exercise?
- When will you read your bible and pray?
- How much time will you devote to kids activities?
- Trimester Rhythms: it is important to build your Sabbath rhythms around the natural rhythms of your roles and your culture. Trimesters are a natural way to calendar a year (the school calendar is also a helpful way to plan if you have kids in school). Know what you have to do in each season and if overall it is a busy or slower season. Here is an example of a broad trimester calendar :
T1 (January – April) T2 (May – August) T3 (September – December)
- Annual Rhythms: Intentionally get longer stretches of rest each year. Plan during slower seasons of work / school schedules etc (summer, end of the year, etc.)
- How many vacation days do you have? How and when are you going to use them?
- How can you get extended time away to work ‘on’ your vocation vs. ‘in’ your vocation (conferences, annual trainings, focused time away to evaluate, plan, dream etc.)
This is a great time of year to take some time and work through these questions to set yourself up for working from a position of rest.