Welcome to day 3 of our 40 day challenge!

(You can catch up on Day 1 and Day 2 , if you missed them)

Today, I’m praying for joy for you! I’ve heard from many who want so badly to experience this rest in joy and delight, but it seems to good to be true. It’s not that we don’t see God as One we should delight in. It’s that accepting this delight for ourselves can be overwhelming. And so, entering into this gift with joy is my prayer for you today.

 

Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices;
my body also will rest secure,
 because you will not abandon me to the realm of the dead,
nor will you let your faithful^[b] one see decay.
You make known to me the path of life;
you will fill me with joy in your presence,
with eternal pleasures at your right hand. Psalm 16:9-11

In these verses we see David is filled with joy, and in that joy his body can rest secure because he trusts in God.

When I first began discovering God’s heart in Sabbath and rest, I began a book called Sabbath by Dan Allender. I wasn’t ready for it yet. Allender doesn’t begin like a scholar (though he is) with a word study to convince or prove. He begins as an artist, painting a picture of joy and delight, and it was too much for me at the beginning. It was too good. Here’s a passage from the introduction:

Delight doesn’t require a journey thousands of miles away to taste the presence of God, but it does require a separation from the mundane, and intentional choice to enter joy and follow God as he celebrates the glory of his creation and his faithfulness to keep his covenant to redeem the captives.

And:

Sabbath rest is entered when we refuse to be bound by complexity or drowned by despair. We enter delight only as we gaze equally and simultaneously at creation and redemption, in spite of the darkness that surrounds us and constantly clamors to be truer than God.

And:

The Sabbath is an invitation to enter delight. The Sabbath, when experienced as God intended, is the best day of our lives. Without question or thought, it is the best day of the week. It is the day we anticipate on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday—and the day we remember on Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday. Sabbath is the holy time where we feast, play, dance, have sex, sing, pray, laugh, tell stories, read, paint, walk, and watch creation in its fullness. Few people are willing to enter the Sabbath and sanctify it, to make it holy, because a full day of delight and joy is more than most people can bear in a lifetime, let alone a week.

Oof. That last sentence was fully convicting to me. This was just too good for me when I was first dipping my toes into the water of a God who wanted me to experience rest, especially when, in ministry, there’s so much need. You may also have things that seem more pressing, more “important” than a day of delight and joy—every week.

As I’ve come to know and experience God more and more in my walk with Him, I’ve discovered that any time I think something might be too good, too forgiving, too loving, too compassionate, too generous of Him, it’s likely true. ♥ He is far greater and far more wonderful than we can imagine.

Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices;
my body also will rest secure,
 because you will not abandon me to the realm of the dead,
nor will you let your faithful^[b] one see decay.
You make known to me the path of life;
you will fill me with joy in your presence,
with eternal pleasures at your right hand. Psalm 16:9-11

Reflection for prayer and/or journaling:

Is there any part of you that finds this joy and delight to be too much/too good? What might a day of delight look like for you? What desires might God be placing in your heart in this?

Action steps:

Look at the list in the passage I quoted above for ideas of things you can choose for your first Sabbath since we began this challenge. If you don’t have a full day available, choose as many hours as you can, and choose things from the list or add ones the Lord brings to mind.

Pray together:

Father, we pray for all of us who feel your gift is just too good, too big, too generous. Especially for something you’ve told us to do! We pray for each heart in this challenge, that you will bring them delight and joy on this journey. Bring to each mind the activities for Sabbath that would bring them the most joy. Help us arrange our days, our work, and our families to accept this gift. Work in the hearts of each family member so that families can experience this joy together. Give each person here a greater revelation of you and your love for them in this challenge.

♥ Samantha