Why Do We Rest?

Genesis 2:1-3

2 Thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array.

2 By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. 3 Then God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done.

Exodus 20:8-11

8 “Remember the Sabbath day by keeping 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, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your male or female servant, nor your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns. 11 For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.

Exodus 16

16 The whole Israelite community set out from Elim and came to the Desert of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after they had come out of Egypt. 2 In the desert the whole community grumbled against Moses and Aaron. 3 The Israelites said to them, “If only we had died by the Lord’s hand in Egypt! There we sat around pots of meat and ate all the food we wanted, but you have brought us out into this desert to starve this entire assembly to death.”

4 Then the Lord said to Moses, “I will rain down bread from heaven for you. The people are to go out each day and gather enough for that day. In this way I will test them and see whether they will follow my instructions. 5 On the sixth day they are to prepare what they bring in, and that is to be twice as much as they gather on the other days.”

6 So Moses and Aaron said to all the Israelites, “In the evening you will know that it was the Lord who brought you out of Egypt, 7 and in the morning you will see the glory of the Lord, because he has heard your grumbling against him. Who are we, that you should grumble against us?” 8 Moses also said, “You will know that it was the Lord when he gives you meat to eat in the evening and all the bread you want in the morning, because he has heard your grumbling against him. Who are we? You are not grumbling against us, but against the Lord.”

9 Then Moses told Aaron, “Say to the entire Israelite community, ‘Come before the Lord, for he has heard your grumbling.’”

10 While Aaron was speaking to the whole Israelite community, they looked toward the desert, and there was the glory of the Lord appearing in the cloud.

11 The Lord said to Moses, 12 “I have heard the grumbling of the Israelites. Tell them, ‘At twilight you will eat meat, and in the morning you will be filled with bread. Then you will know that I am the Lord your God.’”

13 That evening quail came and covered the camp, and in the morning there was a layer of dew around the camp. 14 When the dew was gone, thin flakes like frost on the ground appeared on the desert floor. 15 When the Israelites saw it, they said to each other, “What is it?” For they did not know what it was.

Moses said to them, “It is the bread the Lord has given you to eat. 16 This is what the Lord has commanded: ‘Everyone is to gather as much as they need. Take an omer for each person you have in your tent.’”

17 The Israelites did as they were told; some gathered much, some little. 18 And when they measured it by the omer, the one who gathered much did not have too much, and the one who gathered little did not have too little. Everyone had gathered just as much as they needed.

19 Then Moses said to them, “No one is to keep any of it until morning.”

20 However, some of them paid no attention to Moses; they kept part of it until morning, but it was full of maggots and began to smell. So Moses was angry with them.

21 Each morning everyone gathered as much as they needed, and when the sun grew hot, it melted away. 22 On the sixth day, they gathered twice as much—two omers for each person—and the leaders of the community came and reported this to Moses. 23 He said to them, “This is what the Lord commanded: ‘Tomorrow is to be a day of sabbath rest, a holy sabbath to the Lord. So bake what you want to bake and boil what you want to boil. Save whatever is left and keep it until morning.’”

24 So they saved it until morning, as Moses commanded, and it did not stink or get maggots in it. 25 “Eat it today,” Moses said, “because today is a sabbath to the Lord. You will not find any of it on the ground today. 26 Six days you are to gather it, but on the seventh day, the Sabbath, there will not be any.”

27 Nevertheless, some of the people went out on the seventh day to gather it, but they found none. 28 Then the Lord said to Moses, “How long will you refuse to keep my commands and my instructions? 29 Bear in mind that the Lord has given you the Sabbath; that is why on the sixth day he gives you bread for two days. Everyone is to stay where they are on the seventh day; no one is to go out.” 30 So the people rested on the seventh day.

31 The people of Israel called the bread manna. It was white like coriander seed and tasted like wafers made with honey. 32 Moses said, “This is what the Lord has commanded: ‘Take an omer of manna and keep it for the generations to come, so they can see the bread I gave you to eat in the wilderness when I brought you out of Egypt.’”

33 So Moses said to Aaron, “Take a jar and put an omer of manna in it. Then place it before the Lord to be kept for the generations to come.”

34 As the Lord commanded Moses, Aaron put the manna with the tablets of the covenant law, so that it might be preserved. 35 The Israelites ate manna forty years, until they came to a land that was settled; they ate manna until they reached the border of Canaan.

This Sunday’s service can be viewed on our Facebook page @ Sunday, August 11, 2024

How are you at practicing Rest? Like real Rest? I capitalize this word, to make a point about how important it is for us, as it is the gift God has given us, and a command we are to remember to do. And, to be really honest, I realize I am not good at this practice. At all. It's something I have been working on for some time, and an area of discipleship I am seeking Jesus' Lordship in my life. 

This week we begin the next portion of our series on Discipleship, and will be focusing on the Spiritual Discipline of Rest. 
This Sunday, we will be beginning with Why Rest? Why did God model Rest to us? He is God after all. He didn't even need to rest. And, yet He did, and instilled it into the rhythm of life for us as people, and is built into the last day of our week.

Have you ever wondered why God places the Discipline of Rest in the 10 Commandments? These are all important questions to understand, and also consider our own attitudes towards rest, Maybe you have never considered how following Jesus through the practice of Rest is an important area of discipleship. As I am learning more about Rest, I am convinced it will draw us closer to Him, and change our life for the better. I have come to believe that this is probably the command we disobey the most, and have the most difficult time following through on. 

The Word Sabbath comes from the Hebrew word Shabbat, which simply means 'to stop.' This word is something we resist- right from the start of our lives. As humans we have difficulty with limits. And, if you know anything about boundaries, limits are good for us, and we need them. So too, do our lives need time to just stop, and rest. 

If you're interested in learning more, and preparing more for growing in this area of discipleship and considering rest, I invite you to check out these links on rest. We also get to hear from our sister in Christ, Bethany vonSteinbergs this week, as she will be sharing how God is working in her life in the area of rest.

https://www.drdaltonsmith.com/resources  (there is a quiz in this one, and we will be discussing this quiz next week in worship). 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S1T8taYvUgU (Dr. Saundra Dalton wrote a book called, Sacred Rest)

https://youtu.be/hypNfi10JZo  (excellent video on benefits of rest). 

See you on Sunday! 
In Christ, 
Pastor Kari

GATHERING FOR SUNDAY
CAN BE FOUND AT:
 

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Following the worship gathering, worship services will be uploaded to our website and will be available at www.newdaycov.org/listen.

NewDay Online Giving: https://newday.churchcenter.com/giving

Pastor Search Committee Update:

What has happened: 

1. NewDay has been matched with 8 candidates who were referred by or through Kara Stromberg, the superintendent of the NW Conference. We have prayerfully discussed their written profiles from the CovConnect website (including their resumes, faith journeys, and ministry styles) and their online presence (church websites, personal business websites, sermons, podcasts, social media profiles) to assess potential fit with NewDay’s profile and needs based on the results of the congregational survey.

2. Of these 8, we have decided to contact 5 candidates to request initial zoom interviews to get to know each other better.

3. We have established the compensation package to present to the leadership team for consideration in their budget creation.

What's next: 

1. We will complete initial zoom interviews with interested candidates. The purpose of these interviews is to establish mutual interest in moving forward with offering in-person interviews. We hope to complete these initial interviews within the next 4-6 weeks. 

2. We will start planning for setting up pastoral support teams for the incoming pastor. There will be opportunities to get involved in helping the pastor and their family transition into our community.

What you can do: 

1. Please continue to pray. We are grateful for all of your prayers and especially the dedication of the Search Process Prayer Committee.

     Specific prayer needs: 

       1. For guidance for the search committee as we move through this process of discernment, especially as we start to interact with applicants.

       2. For our future pastor who is listening to God's calling.

       3. For the search process to continue smoothly and for patience for our community as we move through it together.

2. Please reach out to any of us at any time with questions and thoughts. 

PSC members, roles, and contact information: 

Angela DickinsonComment