Stay-cation

I am finishing my first vacation week of 2009. It's been a stay-cation. I've rested, played, rested, read, and even did a little work (a big no-no, I know). Sabbath is not something we religious types do very well. As someone once said, it's likely the commandment we break the most often. As much as I know this, it is still difficult to slow down. I feel like the toddler who refuses to go to bed in fear of missing something. But the biblical notion of Sabbath is not just a day off; it is about being in tune with the rhythms of your body, the world, and your well-being. I think we were wired to take time off and not go full speed, 31 (that's another way of saying, 24-7; get it, 24 + 7=31; I know, I stole that from "Two and a Half Men"). We forget that the backdrop of the commandments was the exodus narrative that says slavery existed for the Hebrew people. The commandments reminded them that they were not commodities; they were created in God's image. In freedom, we are allowed to not be a part of the consumerism that is rampant. We are to keep certain things in perspective. Shalom is the concept of wholeness and not just the absence of conflict. As I conclude my vacation, I don't feel like I've rested enough. But I have one more day to sleep late. Then back to Sunday, a day of work. Remember the Sabbath and keep it holy. Sabbath shalom!