There’s no place like home.

Home is where you hang your heart.

Home is where our story begins.

After spending a day in a bustling city, or being gone on a trip, I look forward to returning to the quiet of my home—the surroundings most reflective of who I am, and what I enjoy.

Home is an oasis, a place where I step out of the world after a busy day, and am reminded of all I have to be thankful for.

Jesus tells us in the world there will be trouble, but He has overcome the world to bring us peace—the wonderful peace of God. This is where our hearts are home, in the peace of His presence.

The Father is with me. I’ve told you all this so that trusting me, you will be unshakable and assured, deeply at peace. In this godless world you will continue to experience difficulties. But take heart! I’ve conquered the world. (John 16:33 MSG) 

As our bodies require rest each night to function well and be healthy, God also knew that spiritually we would need a regular time of inner rest—time to stop, be quiet, and savor His presence.

In Jewish tradition there is a name for this—Shabbat Shalom—literally “may your day of no work be peaceful.”[1] People would use this expression to greet one another on the Sabbath, the weekly day set aside to rest and experience the peace of God.

When my husband was in Jerusalem he was struck by how seriously the Jews take the Sabbath, even today. The whole city basically shuts down. You can’t get anything done. You may find a few shops open owned by Arabs, but all Jewish businesses are closed.

People are at home, at synagogue with their families, or enjoying a “shabbat dinner” with friends. The Sabbath is viewed not as an obligation but a gift.

At the hotel, R. got on the Shabbat elevator by mistake. Reserved for Sabbath use, it doesn’t allow you to push any buttons. Instead, it stops at every floor. Pushing buttons would constitute work, and no work is to be done on the Sabbath.

Although in my view somewhat legalistic, I do appreciate the intent. The Sabbath is to be a day of not doing your “usual work.” Rather, it is meant to simply find rest and refreshing in the things of God—however you choose to do so.

While Jesus was on the earth the Pharisees, the religious leaders of the day, were often out to “catch” Him for performing miracles or other acts strictly forbidden on the Sabbath by Old Testament Law. 

Jesus turns it around and says the Sabbath is made to serve us.

One Sabbath day as Jesus was walking through some grainfields, his disciples began breaking off heads of grain to eat. But the Pharisees said to Jesus, “Look, why are they breaking the law by harvesting grain on the Sabbath?” 

Jesus said to them, “Haven’t you ever read in the Scriptures what David did when he and his companions were hungry? He went into the house of God (during the days when Abiathar was high priest) and broke the law by eating the sacred loaves of bread that only the priests are allowed to eat. He also gave some to his companions.” 

Then Jesus said to them, “The Sabbath was made to meet the needs of people, and not people to meet the requirements of the Sabbath. So the Son of Man is Lord, even over the Sabbath!” (Mark 2:23-28 NLT) 

Although no longer a law for us, there is great wisdom in the Sabbath—taking one day a week to rest and refresh ourselves physically, mentally, and spiritually in God’s presence.

Paradoxically, we find as we do, all our “stuff” still gets done, often with more focus and clarity—perhaps because we’ve taken the time to set our priorities in place and seek His presence—where our hearts are truly at home.

[1] http://jewsandjoes.com/what-is-the-meaning-of-shabbat-shalom.html

Copyright © 2015 Cheryl Elton

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