Overcoming Overwhelmed: Healthy Rhythms Sabbath

Overcoming Overwhelmed: Healthy Rhythms Sabbath Leo Crosby / General Overcoming Overwhelmed / Rest Life can be a juggling act with all we have to accomplish in 24 hours. To stay ahead of the game and make it more manageable, remember that God-given rest is a not-so-secret weapon! This rhythmic time out was established at Creation. The devil knows this and wants to quench our access to it. Establishing a healthy rhythm for regular time to pause and recalibrate can overcome being overwhelmed. Big Idea:Fight back against being overwhelmed with a simple but effective weapon - healthy rhythms of rest & renewal. Online description/Ad (this is new and talking to wes and chris how to make this routine): Are you feeling overwhelmed? If you're nodding your head "yes", you're not alone. We often take on more than we can handle and end up feeling stressed and burnt out. But there is hope! By establishing a healthy rhythm of regular rest, we can overcome being overwhelmed. This God-given weapon was established at Creation and is vital to our well-being. The devil knows this and wants to quench our access to it, but we can fight back! Join us this weekend as we continue our series Overwhelmed: Don’t Crack from the Pressure.

Intro

› How many would raise your hand and say you have more to do on your list than you have time in the day/week to get done?

SLIDE Stress Memes

Welcome to EC, online and around the globe

A not-so-secret weapon

In the beginning God knew we as people would find ourselves in seasons of stress and feeling overwhelmed. Knowing this from the beginning he created a solution in creation itself.

Rhythms were established at creation

SLIDE Gen 1 In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. 2 The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.

› Leo’s version: It was overwhelming in the beginning, there was chaos…some might say overwhelming.

The natural rhythm of day/night – Day 1 Day/Night

Gen 1:3 And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. 4 And God saw that the light was good. And God separated the light from the darkness. 5 God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night.

SLIDEAnd there was evening and there was morning, the first day.

SLIDE Photo Light/Dark

Day 2: The natural rhythm of weather & Tides

6 And God said, “Let there be an expanse in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters.” 7 And God made the expanse and separated the waters that were under the expanse from the waters that were above the expanse. And it was so. 8 And God called the expanse Heaven.

SLIDE And there was evening and there was morning, the second day

Day 3: Natural rhythm of plant life

Reproduction, photosynthesis (which would be needed for animal human life btw)

GEN 1: 11 And God said, “Let the earth sprout vegetation, plants yielding seed, and fruit trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind, on the earth.” And it was so. 12 The earth brought forth vegetation, plants yielding seed according to their own kinds, and trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. 13 And there was evening and there was morning, the third day.

SLIDEAnd there was evening and there was morning, the third day.

SLIDE Plant/Garden of Eden

› Photosynthesis was needed to sustain the next part of creation – rhythm of turning CO2 into O2

Day 4: Rhythm of Seasons

GEN 1: 14 And God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night. And let them be for signs and for seasons, and for days and years, 15 and let them be lights in the expanse of the heavens to give light upon the earth.” And it was so. 16 And God made the two great lights—the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night—and the stars. 17 And God set them in the expanse of the heavens to give light on the earth, 18 to rule over the day and over the night, and to separate the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good. 19

SLIDE And there was evening and there was morning, the fourth day.

SLIDE Photo: Sun/Moon/Seasons - The changing of the seasons is essential to the balance and cycles of life. In the spring, plants awake from their winter slumber, growing and blooming in a burst of colors and fragrances. Summer brings lush growth, ripe fruits and days full of sunshine – all necessary for sustaining life during the colder months ahead. In autumn, leaves turn golden-orange as animals prepare for hibernation. And then winter arrives - a time for rest and renewal before nature's cycle begins anew.

Rhythm of Life

days 5: Animal Kingdom

20 And God said, “Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the expanse of the heavens.” ... 23

SLIDE And there was evening and there was morning, the fifth day.

SLIDE Photo: Animal Kingdom

Day 6: MANKIND

24 And God said, “Let the earth bring forth living creatures according to their kinds—livestock and creeping things and beasts of the earth according to their kinds.” And it was so. …26 Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness...So God created man in his own image,in the image of God he created him;male and female he created them.28 And God blessed them. ...31 And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good.

SLIDE And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.

SLIDE Photo: Adam & Eve

The structure of creation was ultimately to support mankind.

The Rhythm of Rest

SLIDE Gen 2 1Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. 2 And on the seventh day God finished his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done. 3 So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God rested from all his work that he had done in creation.

› NEED TRANSITION STATEMENT HERE…today we are going to talk about one of the best rhythms God established to helping us not crack under the pressure of being overwhelmed…Healthy Sabbath Rhythms

The Forgotten Commandment

Story of the giving of the ten commandments - stone tablets given in front of the whole assembly.

The first three how we relate to God; the last six how we relate to others.

That’s only 9…what about the forgotten fourth?

This command has more commentary than all the rest, takes 4 verses to state…let’s look at it.

SLIDE Exodus 20:8–11 ESV 8 “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. 9 Six days you shall labor, and do all your work, 10 but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your male servant, or your female servant, or your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates. 11 For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.

Why we don’t cut hands off anymore (probable cut for time)

Theologian J. I. Packer proposed a solution for this confusion by distinguishing three separate types of Law (the lists of do’s and don’ts that God gave to Moses): Moral, Civil/ Political, and Ceremonial Law.

Strange laws of our land (civil) –

· It’s illegal in Fairbanks, Alaska, to give alcoholic beverages to a moose?

· Illegal in San Francisco to wipe your car with used underwear?

· In South Bend, Indiana, it’s illegal for monkeys to smoke cigarettes

· In Missouri it is illegal to drive with and uncaged bear

· In Wyoming, you may not take a picture of a rabbit from Jan to Apr without an official permit

the overlooked 4th COMMANDMENT

What does biblical sabbath look like?

· SLIDE Sabbath(שַׁבָּת, shabbath). A day of complete rest from secular work following six days of labor. Established and modeled by God.

· SLIDE Biblical Sabbath is a twenty-four-hour block of time in which we stop work, enjoy rest, practice delight, and contemplate God.

Does this really apply today?

MR. Asako

· Report submitted to Japanese gov’t…Mr A…

· Often worked 110hrs/week at snack food processing company (16 hours a day, 7 days a week)

· Mr. A found dead at his work station from heart attack – he was 34

SLIDE (put the 3 countries and words on slide together, I’m not going to try and pronounce) Japan: karōshi 過労死. Chinese: guolaosi 過勞死 South Korea: gwarosa 過勞死 All three terms were coined fairly recently to describe something so new that their languages didn’t have a word for it. These words describe the act of literally working yourself to death. All three of these cultures discovered they needed a word to describe an increasingly common phenomenon: people dropping dead at their jobs because of working insane hours, under intense pressure, with little to no rest. It has become so common, in fact, that international human rights organizations are calling on the governments of those nations to do something about it.[1]

Did you know that a consistent pattern of overworking can impact the neurochemistry of your brain?

When we are constantly in an intense and demanding environment, our brains release hormones and chemicals to help us meet the challenges we face. Over time, the body becomes accustomed to these hormones and chemicals to the point that we develop a kind of dependency on them. In some cases, business executives in intense environments have actually developed clinical adrenaline addiction. So what does all this have to do with Sabbath? It means that when we attempt to make a significant lifestyle change, say from working 24/7 to maintaining a balanced work and Sabbath rhythm, our bodies can experience a type of withdrawal. And if you decide to take up the challenge of being serious about the Sabbath, the battle may be physical as well as emotional and spiritual.[2]

So why do we avoid sabbath?

1. Culture’s mantra - “Your identity is what you accomplish”

2. It’s foreign and scary

a. Frightened to death of what we’ll see inside ourselves if we slow down. And I’m wanting us to immerse ourselves in things like solitude, Sabbath, and silent reflection?

Implementing the rhythm

SLIDE– I’D LIKE A SLIDE THAT BUILDS ONE POINT ON THE OTHER, SO AT THE END ALL 4 (JUST THE BOLD WORDS) ARE ON THE SLIDE

1) Stop (time-out, pause) - work, all work, anything that feels like work

2) Rest - engage in activities that restore and replenish us — from napping, hiking, reading, and eating good food to enjoying hobbies and playing sports. The key is to rest from both paid and unpaid work.

3) Delight- As part of observing Sabbath, God invites us to join in the celebration, to enjoy and delight in his creation and all the gifts he offers us in it. These innumerable gifts come to us in many forms, including people, places, and things.

4) Contemplate- Pondering the love of God is the central focus of our Sabbaths. What makes a Sabbath a biblical Sabbath is that it is “holy to the Lord.” We are not taking time off from God; we are drawing closer to him.

a. Psalm 92:1–2 ESV 1 It is good to give thanks to the Lord, to sing praises to your name, O Most High; 2 to declare your steadfast love in the morning, and your faithfulness by night,

Beginner’s guide to Sabbath Rest

Spirit not the letter - don’t be legalistic about this, be spiritual

2 Corinthians 3:6 ESV 6 who has made us sufficient to be ministers of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit. For the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.

• Pick a day - spirit vs letter of the law

• 6pm Saturday eat dinner as a family

• Delight - play, movie, etc

• Rest - SLEEP

• Contemplate - Church

• Sat 12pm - Sun 12pm

• Friday 6pm - Sat 6p

Invitation

· When will you start your sabbath rest rhythm…turn and tell someone

· Real rest and overcoming overwhelmed starts with a relationship with Jesus

Closing

· iDecided – 55498

· Don’t have a church home?

· Join us next week –

· Prayer Partners

· Benediction

[1] Morris, Robert. Take the Day Off (pp. 26-27). FaithWords. Kindle Edition [2] Scazzero, Peter. The Emotionally Healthy Leader (p. 152). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.