ON YOUR MARK: WEEK 2 DAY 6

MARK 2:23-28

JESUS IS LORD OF THE SABBATH

23 One Sabbath he was going through the grainfields, and as they made their way, his disciples began to pluck heads of grain. 24 And the Pharisees were saying to him, “Look, why are they doing what is not lawful on the Sabbath?” 25 And he said to them, “Have you never read what David did, when he was in need and was hungry, he and those who were with him: 26 how he entered the house of God, in the time of Abiathar the high priest, and ate the bread of the Presence, which it is not lawful for any but the priests to eat, and also gave it to those who were with him?” 27 And he said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. 28 So the Son of Man is lord even of the Sabbath.”

I loved to lead off in baseball; I would plan how it was going to look, stealing a base, and it was awesome. Overall I was a great base runner, yet one day the girl I liked was at my game. During that game, I got a single and then, I did my signature lead off look, twice, but never actually ran! My coach then called a time out and came over and said, “I have given you the steal sign twice, what are you doing?” I was busy looking great and missing the point of leading off. I stole second on the next pitch and never thought about the optics of my lead off much after that.

I believe that a day off is a gift from God to us, like leading off helps a runner steal a base, a day off resets our minds and bodies. It is a marker to our days, weeks, years, and seasons of life. Don't miss the joy of the day of rest, but also don't make it into a horrible burden to keep. It is a gift, enjoy it. Go for a run, mow the lawn, go sledding with the family, watch a game together, enjoy a long dinner and games with people you love, clean the house and then enjoy it. In short, stop making a burden out of this blessing, take a day and unplug from the grind; God wants it for you!