Have you ever signed up for being critiqued? You said to yourself, “I want to get better at ______; so I am going to ask others to tell me how I can improve.” Have you done that with someone who is a professional in the area you want to improve?

I get a sick stomach ache when I think about it.

I did that. I attended a Writers’ Bootcamp in 2016 and asked for critique of my writing. I submitted myself to another’s examination and judgment. What I found was not only helpful but encouraging.

That person has included me as part of his launch team for his soon to release book, Learning to Speak God from Scratch.

His work is a thoughtful examination of words that have been deemed sacred in various religious practices and have become words tossed about without the sacrosanct respect said words deserve.

Sabbath is one of those words for me.

I grew up in the ‘Chr-easter’ tradition: parents who attended church as children without developing much faith around the practice of going to church, and who chose to raise their own children with knowledge of the two “important” Christian holidays of Christmas and Easter. I heard the important stories of God and Jesus, but missed the why of value in knowing about them.

Head versus Heart. Religion versus Faith.

I came to faith in Christ at 23 after a lot of searching for love in all the wrong places. I was standing outside at Aztec Center near midnight, sweeping the patio and emptying trash cans; the duties of a night job I had while I was pursuing my teaching credential. I stood silent on a cold February night looking up at the stars and simply asked, “If you’re real God, would you let me know?”

The response was equally silent but immediate: two stars that were parallel and looked liked eyes looking at me, twinkled. And my heart expanded and I believed. That was it.

I remember that day like it was yesterday. The exact date? Nope. But the fact that I asked for a sign and got a response was enough to convince me.

The people I knew who were Christians also practiced a literal religion; do what was spelled out in the Bible and all of life will go well.

I’ve never been very good at following people’s rules; I wonder, what about all the other possible responses? Click To Tweet

Learning to love Sabbath was one of those to-dos.

Where are you with practicing Sabbath?

Is it a burden? A religious convention meant for others to follow? An old-fashioned word that has little meaning in today’s immediate-oriented and production-driven culture?

My learning along the Way has shown me Sabbath is a gift of rest.

I tried to make it a ritual and hated it. I prepped all the meals the day before, I made sure all the clothes were ready for church the next day, I ran myself ragged in order to rest. I wanted Sabbath to be a wonderful practice but how I was approaching it wasn’t working. When I recognized it to be something to help me slow down, to notice God at work and take time to re-create, the meaning of Sabbath was transformed for me.

In my month of Showing Up I am trying to put into practice things I’ve attempted and dropped at various points in life. I invite you to join me in this week’s challenge. I’m going to sort through ideas and stuff to begin getting rid of what doesn’t fit anymore.  What ideas, what stories, what things, don’t work in this season of life?

The stories I tell myself, the items I hang on to, the clothes that I keep for that ‘someday’ are all going to be critiqued and evaluated; looking for what is valued, deemed worthy of keeping and what needs to be given away.

Practicing Sabbath rest has given me room for reflecting on what is important and what is no longer of value for me.

Are you willing to take inventory? Have you already made this a practice in your life? I’d love to hear how practicing Sabbath rest has opened up your awareness.