Whether with our Missionary Training School students or our ministry staff, we at Global Frontier Missions emphasize Sabbath rest. We believe it is crucial to a long-lasting and fruitful ministry. We have found that regularly observing a Sabbath leads to intimacy with God and holistic renewal. This helps prevent burnout, fatigue, idolatry, and spiritual dryness.

It is easy to allow busyness to hinder our weekly Sabbath. Whether it is the needs of the community we are serving or the to-do list we have not finished, it might seem nonviable to take an entire day off. However, it is a matter of time management and priority.

Christ appointed the twelve apostles “so that they might be with him and he might send them out to preach” (Mark 3:14). Our founder and director, Grant Haynes, recently used this verse as a challenge to make sure our priorities are in order:

Christ called His disciples to be with Him and then to go out and preach.

A Sabbath is more than simply taking a day off work. It is an attitude of the heart. It is about stopping and completely surrendering the day to Him. It is a day of finding freedom and rest in who He is and what He has done.

Timothy Keller sums it up in his article, Wisdom and Sabbath Rest ,

“The purpose of Sabbath is to enjoy your God, life in general, what you have accomplished in the world through his help, and the freedom you have in the gospel—the freedom from slavery to any material object or human expectation.”

Jesus said that the Sabbath was made for man and He is Lord of the Sabbath (Mark 2:27-28). It is truly for our benefit, so rest in Him!