“Six days you may work and do all your tasks, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. ... That is why the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.” – Exodus 20:9-11 (CEB)

After a stretch of running ragged, I finally got back to a regular bedtime, and the relief surprised me. The marker of getting healthy again wasn’t some breakthrough. It was just returning to a rhythm that works. Sometimes the most faithful thing you can do is go to bed.

Rest is trust. It says the world does not depend on me. One small way to practice it is the prayer the church calls the Examen: at the end of the day, look back and notice where God was, and where your love wandered. It is a daily, two-minute Sabbath of the heart.

Tomorrow we gather for worship, and worship is its own kind of stopping, a whole community choosing to be loved rather than used. Come and rest with us. Online worship is available at youtube.com/@mcphersonfirst.

God, slow me down tonight. As I look back on this day, show me where you were, and draw my heart home to you. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Andrew Conard’s Substack

Loved, Not Used