7 Steps to Intentional Rest

I know–it’s Monday, and here I am writing about intentional rest, or Sabbath. You’re probably thinking I’ve missed the boat just a bit; Sunday, the traditional Christian Sabbath, was yesterday. It’s Monday, the first day of the work week. But here’s the thing, friends: I want to give you six whole days of lead time to think about intentional rest before you try to actually do anything about it.

I think the Orthodox Jewish community is on to something in the way they plan for Sabbath. Meals, activities, housework–all of it is planned and executed in such a way as to allow for intentional rest. And I’m not just talking about physical rest; I’m talking about mental, emotional, and spiritual rest. I wrote last Wednesday about why rest matters, and today, I want to talk to you about how to get more of it.

1. Choose your Sabbath. Your day of intentional rest doesn’t have to be Sunday. Consider which day will work best for you as a Sabbath day. If you’re not a Christian, then you shouldn’t be feeling any pressure to make Sunday your Sabbath (and by the way, you don’t have to be a Christian to have a weekly Sabbath). If you are a Christian, it’s not de facto that Sunday will work best for you. Those of us who spend our Sundays serving in church like it’s our second job don’t get much rest that day. And some of us, like my friend Wendi, have unusual schedules. Wendi’s husband JB is a doctor, and he works on Sundays, so they have chosen an alternate day of the week to be their Sabbath. Finally, if you feel like reserving a whole day at this point in your life is just too great a change to implement, then try starting with a half day. You can go up from there.

2. Put your Sabbath on the calendar. Bill Hybels makes a great point in his book and sermon series Simplify that we are far more likely to succeed at the things we schedule time for. This includes down time. So block out your Sabbath on your calendar. Say “no” to anything that will interfere with your Sabbath. This doesn’t mean you can’t schedule social time, if social time is truly restful for you, but take care not to plan anything that will leave you feeling less than restored.

3. Manage your household on the other six days of the week. If we’re not careful, Sabbath can easily become a catch-up day, cluttered by errands we didn’t get to, bills waiting to be paid, and housework that still needs to be done. Because I do Sabbath on the traditional Sunday, I have committed to powering through errands and housework on Saturday so that there’s nothing hanging over my head on Sunday. Anything I don’t get to on Saturday either waits until Monday or the following weekend (because, seriously–no one is going to die if it does). Also, I try to spread out my housework over the course of the week (for more on this, click here) so that my pre-Sabbath work is less daunting.

4. Employ a Crock-Pot. When I was a little girl, my grandma always made a huge Sunday dinner, which is kind of the traditional Christian way of doing things in America. This was nice for the rest of us, but not so restful for her. And while I love to cook, I find it’s easy to be worn out by dinnertime on Sundays if I make a huge, complicated dinner. A simple, homey meal in the Crock-Pot frees me to rest, read, and play instead of spending the day in the kitchen. I assemble the meal the night before, put the Crock-Pot insert in the fridge overnight, and it’s ready to go the next morning. If you don’t have a Crock-Pot, might I suggest you look into one? There are about a bajillion great slow cooker cookbooks out there, not to mention millions of recipes online. Here are five of my faves.

4. Unplug from social media. Getting mental rest can best be achieved by quieting the noise in our lives, and social media creates almost all of that noise in our culture. So commit to staying off Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, and the internet in general. It’s only for a day, after all. You might be surprised by how liberated you feel. It’s becoming popular to take a “sabbatical” from social media, with folks disappearing for weeks or even months at a time, and there is certainly value in that, but if you’re a blogger or have a web-based business, it isn’t viable. Unplugging from social media for one day a week, if you can manage it, can be incredibly refreshing, and it makes space for other things.

5. Unplug from electronics. You might think that movies, video games, and other forms of electronics are relaxing, but they can actually leave you feeling more drained. Taking a day off from electronics is restful for the brain, allowing it a reprieve from these particular kinds of activities.

6. Plan some time in nature. There isn’t much that’s more restorative than God’s creation. Get out for a walk or a bike ride if you can–one that’s without any performance pressure. Just inhale the fresh air, drink in the beauty of the sky and the foliage. Breathe deeply. Move unhurriedly.

7. Focus on relationships. Talk, hug, and play with those you love. Just be together, without interruptions and distractions. Whatever you do, even if it’s a nap or some quiet reading time, do it together and do it slowly.

If you are overextended these days, I hope you’ll consider implementing a day of intentional rest each week. If you do, let me know how it goes!

Mercy & grace,

Harmony

Photo credit: Universal Pops. License: Creative Commons 2.0