The Bible is an incredibly diverse book with different literary genres, authors, perspectives, but there are common threads that hold it all together.  One of those threads that we see from the very beginning is the Hebrew word and concept of “Sabbath.”

It is a word that means “stop,” “rest,” and “perfection” all at the same time.  It is introduced in the very first chapter of the Bible when God models for us the need and importance of Sabbath by resting on the seventh day after creating all that is.

Throughout scripture, this Sabbath is something to be observed one in every seven days, but in places like Leviticus 25, we also see that it is something to be practiced every seven years and even more so every forty-nine years (seven times seven).  These are called “Sabbatical Years.”

Wherever we find it, “Sabbath” or “Sabbatical,” it is a time to heal, to find renewal and freedom, to worship and give thanks.  Wherever we find it, it is a gift from God – something God wants for our lives.

This past fall, we found out that God is giving us a sabbatical.  We navigated a very involved and competitive grant application process and prayerfully awaited a response.  Then, one day this past fall we nervously opened the letter we had been waiting for and read with overwhelming relief that we were awarded a four-month sabbatical that would start this past May.

God was giving us a chance to stop, to renew, and to find healing.

This type of sabbatical is unique to pastors and missionaries (for missionaries it is more commonly called furlough).  Professors are the only other profession that comes to mind that commonly go on sabbatical, but for them, that is often a time to pull away to produce something.  For pastors, it is the opposite.  Long ago, people figured out that the tool pastors use to do their job is their very soul.  Like any other tool, it becomes worn and sometimes broken with use.  If the tool is not given time to heal and repair, pastors often quit – or worse, keep going to the detriment of themselves and everyone around them.

For a little while I will be writing to you from sabbatical and praying that you find the healing rhythm and gift of sabbath in your own life.  It is a gift God wants you to have and knows that you need.