Wendy Moore

One busy congregation made the gutsy move of ceasing activitiesand busyness — for a whole year! Find out why and how they did it.

A year ago last September, we at St. James Anglican Church in Caledon, Ont., agreed to enter into a Sabbath year. Why? People here, in this rural congregation of 110 families, had been more than a little over-stretched. They had worked hard to accomplish a major building project, experienced changes in pastoral leadership, were struggling financially and, like many churches, faced a decline in numbers.

All of these realities — coupled with the personal hustle of day-to-day life — made for a very weary and frazzled congregation.

Some of us had been doing a little reading and reflecting on the Sabbath day itself. That led me into thinking about the Sabbath year which occurs in one out of seven years in the Bible.

What would happen if St. James was to take a Sabbath year?

How could we do it? Using the Sabbath year teachings found in the Old Testament we adapted these principles to life at St. James.

Here is a quick summary of how we did it:

If in a Sabbath year, the land is to rest, so, we will give the church, which belongs to God, a rest. The church is not so much about the facility, as it is about God’s people. To rest is to abide with God. It is a holy rest, a time to set the church and the people apart exclusively for the Lord, for his purpose and for his glory.

 

If in the Sabbath year, people were released from work obligations, then the people of St. James are to be released from “work” around the church. On the other hand, if there is “work” that is a joy, a delight, and a pleasure to do, then we are free to pursue it with joy and to consider it holy work.

 

In the Sabbath year, if the fruit of the land is to be of benefit for all people equally, as they have need, so then will the fruits and blessings of our church be shared with everyone equally. In the Sabbath year, God calls us not only to allow for provision for the poor and the vulnerable but also to provide nourishment for the spiritually poor and the spiritually vulnerable. Therefore, in the Sabbath year we are called to generously share our experience of God, including his power working in us.

 

If debts are to be cancelled or postponed in the Sabbath year, the difficult questions become what to do with things like emotional debt, the sense of personal obligation, the rejected peace offering, the demand for retribution, the simple misunderstanding that has become a mountain. This is the year to let it all go. Trust in the Lord. Consider our Lord’s prayer, “forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors.”

 

The Sabbath year is our year to consciously entrust ourselves to our Lord and his gracious provision, to listen quietly for his voice, to walk gently beside him, to let his presence permeate our entire beings and to permeate the full body of Christ here at St. James.”

 

So now the big question is, “How did it go?”

At first, to many of the good people at St. James, a Sabbath year was a radical idea. Then, we had an electrical fire, caused by lightening. It didn’t look like much, but the water damage and other related electrical issues surely disrupted the usual rhythm of things. But, by Christmas, we had settled into the idea of our Sabbath year…most of us at least. There will always be those energized souls amongst us who just keep going and going.

As the pastor of this little church of St. James, my experience is that the Sabbath year was absolutely wonderful. I would do it again and plan to do so beginning in September of 2016.

What happened? The busy business stopped. The edginess is gone. There is a greater acceptance of others. There is also a deeper sense of fellowship. I find that there is a gentle sense of a peace and patience. There is a renewed affirmation of who we are as children of God. I believe that these things happened because we were taking time, not to be busy, but to rest in the Lord, allowing us to be who God created us to be with one another.

There is now a quest to understand our spirituality more profoundly. I believe too, that we discovered the gift of discernment and wisdom. Now decisions are reached more prayerfully and thoughtfully, and always with the well-being of the church family in mind.

Those who decided to take the Sabbatical year off from their church “duties” have returned refreshed. Our church attendance is up marginally and it looks like our year will close in the black. Admittedly, there were times when we had to remind ourselves to not panic, but to trust in the Lord.

We decided to dedicate one of our Sunday services to focusing on Sabbath rest, in fact, it has come to be called “the Sabbath Rest Service.” It has become the favourite service of the month. It is simple, quiet, gentle, and beautiful.

Six of our “cooks” (all male) decided that they would like to offer a “Sumptuous Sabbath Breakfast” which is offered on the first Sunday of the month followed by our Sabbath Rest Service. Ideally on a Sabbath Rest Sunday, when our people come to church, a gorgeous breakfast is waiting for them. Then the Sabbath Rest Service begins. Our prayer is for a grace-filled pace to be set for the rest of our day with the Lord.

As I write this I realize that these words do not capture the fullness of what God has done here. But He has done marvelous things. We just had to let go of our stuff and be still long enough to watch and listen and to trust Him.

Are you thinking about a Sabbath Year?

*Pray about taking a Sabbath Year and how it may be interpreted into the life and culture of your congregation. Is the timing right?

*Present the concept to wardens, ministry leaders, advisory board. Define roadblocks, path-forward, commitments.

*Set the calendar for the coming Sept – Sept., keeping cherished events, at the same time setting aside as much of the busy stuff as possible. Let go of the shoulds and coulds.

*Keep everything simple.

*Teach and explain about the Sabbath Year, its biblical foundations and application in your church today.

*Except for the wardens, everyone is set free from their responsibilities. They may carry on only if they love what they do and it is a great joy to them, otherwise they are free.

*Truly trust in the provision of the Lord. Share what He has provided with those in need.

* Rest in the Lord.

Last spring, I was doing what I believe many of my fellow clergy might do, and that is to begin to wonder what exactly we (my congregation and I) should be planning in the way of activities and programs for the congregation for the upcoming fall/winter season. Like many of us, I prayed about it. I had lots of ideas, but nothing seemed quite right. Then, one beautiful spring morning, as I was driving to my church and pondering what to do, I felt as if God was saying to me, “Your people are tired, they have worked hard, they are a little disappointed in the fruits of their labours, and they are slightly discouraged. They don’t need a lot of busy-ness, they need time to rest to simply be—time to come back to basics.”

“But,” I said, “the church isn’t growing much and we’re operating very close to the line financially: how can we rest? And besides, I like the busy-ness.” Again I felt God say to me, “Precisely, that is why all of you need Sabbath Rest—a whole year’s worth.”

I spoke to my wardens and my advisory board, and—surprisingly—they all concurred: it would be good to take a Sabbath Year. I then began to study what the Seventh Year Sabbath means exactly, and how it could work in our congregation in the coming year. I discovered that there are three aspects of the Seventh Year Sabbath:

Release of the Land

God proclaimed that, in the Seventh Year, there were to be no crops planted: the land was to rest. At the same time, the land by its very nature would bring forth some produce. This produce was to be shared amongst households, masters and slaves, the needy and the vulnerable, and the stranger. During this Seventh Year, the people were to trust in the Lord’s provision. It is this trusting in the power and provision of God that brings us back to basics, that God will “give us this day our daily bread.”

He did all this so you would never say to yourself, ‘I have achieved all this wealth with my own strength and energy.’ Remember the Lord your God, He is the one who gives you power to be successful. (Deut. 8:17-18)

This year, we have applied the concept of the resting of the land to our congregational life. For one year, we will stop the busy work, the big events, the major projects. We will step away from all of this busy-ness, and simply rest in the presence of the Lord. We want to take time to see where God is, and ask what is truly important for the kingdom in this place. Sometimes we get ourselves so overcommitted, that we just don’t have a sense of what we are really doing and why. This year we will stand back from the noise, be still, and ask what is God’s will, not ours.

Release from Debt

In the Seventh Year Sabbath, sometimes referred to as the Year of Release, there is a release from debt. The texts I read were not certain if this meant release from the entire debt (as in Jubilee) or if it meant release from debt obligations for the Sabbath Year, a year in which there would be no harvest income generated. Whichever way it was intended, one would be debt free for at least a year.

Taking this concept into our church life, we cannot (unfortunately) be free from certain debt obligations that we have. That being said, it is understood that this year we will not push our people about financial issues: this year we will have no financial campaigns, no carrying on week after week about the budget. And we have agreed to trust that our people will share what they can.

Curiously, we were tested right at the beginning of our Sabbath Year. There was an electrical fire which, although not huge, caused enough damage that insurance was involved and of course there is a deductible which understandably was not in our budget. Without asking, people have responded with donations toward this deductible.

There is another form of debt to consider. In some translations of the Lord ’s Prayer, it is written, “forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors.” As a congregation, are there people whom we believe to be in our debt, if so, can we let this sense of debt go, release our debtors, set them free? We can ask this same question on a personal level as well.

Release from Slavery

God said that in the Seventh Year Sabbath, all slaves were to be released if they wished to be. Furthermore, the slaves were not to be simply set free, but were to be given enough provision that they could begin new work as a free person, and become financially independent. In essence, these slaves were to be given an opportunity to begin a whole new life if they chose to accept their right to freedom.

We have taken this release from slavery and applied it to all of our volunteers (except the wardens). Everyone has been released from any form of responsibility or commitment to work in the church. Those who are happy to be involved and delighted to share their gifts and skills are welcomed and encouraged to carry on. On the other hand, those for whom their work in the church has become a drag and a “have to do” are released. So far, we have lost only one person—and gained six willing hearts. An unexpected outcome is the inspiring sense, when going into the sanctuary on Sunday, or attending a meeting, of knowing that everyone who is there is there because they want to be present and to participate.

Slavery, like debt, has another side to it. It includes those amongst us who are vulnerable, whose lives seem boxed in, as if they are chained to a past that has no future. How can we, with God’s help, break their chains, set them free and provide them with hope for tomorrow. This is a requisite of the Sabbath Year.

How is it going for us so far?

At this point in time we not far into our Sabbath Year. I have not as yet heard one complaint. I have, however, heard lots of reminders around: “Remember this is our Sabbath Year, let’s keep it simple and easy.”

We are making every effort too to reclaim the Seventh Day, the Sabbath Day, and, this is reflected in our worship, our communication, and our focus. Again, people are talking about it and claiming their Sabbath Day.

I have only recently become aware of the sense of mutuality that is emerging. There is a developing Sabbath Spirit: we are all in this together, supporting and encouraging each other to keep the Sabbath.

Our newcomers are intrigued by our Sabbath keeping and feel quite relaxed, coming into this atmosphere of rest and simplicity.

In my study on Sabbath Rest, I read that the word rest in its original context does not mean so much sleeping or napping as it does abiding with God. So the Sabbath Year of Rest is our time to truly be with God. It is our time to stand back and try to see ourselves, through God’s eyes.

My hope is that, when we come the end of our Sabbath Year, we will be refreshed and renewed, encouraged and energized in the power and presence of God. We will be able to define what we missed, what we didn’t miss, what is important to us—and what God is preparing for us.

My prayer for those in my charge during this our Sabbath Year is this:

May Christ make his home in your hearts. May your roots grow down into God’s love and keep you strong. May you have the power to understand, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is. May you experience the love of Christ. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness and power that comes from God. (adapted from Ephesians 4:17-19)

A Sabbath Year. A good idea? So far, so good. Thanks be to God.