The Sabbath Simplicity Lifestyle, Part 2: How to Create One

What were Sundays like when you were growing up?

We'd go to church and then, sometimes go out to eat after the service.  But once we got home, my mom would do the laundry. I can still hear the sound of Neil Diamond's "Soolaimon," sometimes also sung or hummed by my mom, in concert with the sound of the washing machine. I'd read with the music as a backdrop, sometimes singing along.

Yesterday, in part one of this two-part series on creating a sabbath lifestyle, I talked about how the book, Rest: Living in Sabbath Simplicity, inspired me to make changes toward creating a slower, sabbath lifestyle.

I described how doing so has changed my morning and evening routines. It's also changing my experience on Sundays.

But doing so in good ways, that make my days better. As I mentioned yesterday, it's a slow lifestyle, and her book is actually a slow lifestyle book.

Slow living always means taking more time to savor life, in addition to the Sabbath rest this lifestyle generates.

The heart of honoring the Sabbath happens on the day you choose each week, which for me, is Sunday. That is the shift I am tweaking even more than the other days of the week, toward rest.

Do you have a day of rest on the weekend?

“Come with Me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest.”
- Mark 6:31 (NIV)

Shifting the Way You See Yourself

Sabbath Simplicity can become a lifestyle that helps you uncover your true self & keeps you from defining yourself in misleading ways.

In the book I've quoted above, the author makes the point that giving ourselves a Sabbath and spending time with God will infuse that day with love that has nothing to do with accomplishments or possessions.

She says that we sometimes see ourselves in terms of what we own or think we need to own. Or define ourselves in terms of what we have accomplished or failed to accomplish.

Taking a break from shopping and working breaks that spell and may make it easier to see ourselves the way God does.

Applied to myself, it means that when I choose this lifestyle, I become the person who loves Hallmark movies, and laughing with her son. Or the person who gets lost in a novel and returns to awareness to find that the light in the room changed as afternoon headed for evening.

Life, in those moments, becomes quiet times, and cups of tea. Family time and time with friends.

How to Create Sabbath Simplicity in Your Life

I suggest starting with creating moments of rest in your day. And then, you can move toward changing what you do on the weekends.

Try it right now: take several deep breaths in a row, before continuing to read.

Mentally let go of any stress you have been feeling. Stretch if you need to and then, take another deep breath or two.

Take a moment to imagine what’s next for you, in your day. Imagine it going smoothly and well before returning to what you are doing now.

Could you find a way to take a break like this several times a day?

The next step might be to create an hour’s rest in your evening that does not include multitasking. Time with family, time with your spouse, or time just for you. At the end of that time, imagine restful sleep that night, and a peaceful day the next day.

And finally, how might you create more Sabbath rest during your weekend, each week? What shifts would you have to make?

As this post comes to an end, I encourage you to continue thinking about your need for rest and how you might meet it.

A Gift for You

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To access Sabbath Hygge: 4 Ways to Use Hygge to Create Deeper Rest, other slow living lifestyle inspiration, and the rest of my lifestyle library, click the highlighted link.
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What are your thoughts about making time for rest?

Do you create moments of rest each day? And a weekly time of rest? If you don’t, what could you shift in order to do so?

See you next time!

Love, Jeanine