Ben Wilson, LPC

Ann:

In the book Sabbath, Restoring the Sacred Rhythms of Rest by Wayne Mueller, he describes the creation account then goes on to consider the day of rest God observed after creation. He says this

“Later, in the book of Exodus, we read, ‘In six days God made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day God rested, and was refreshed.’ Here, the word ‘refreshed,’ vaiynafesh, literally means and God exhaled. The creation of the world was like the life-quickening inhale; the Sabbath is the exhale. Without the Sabbath exhale, the life-giving inhale is impossible.”

In the midst of restoring your soul from any of life’s damaging blows, actually any time in our lives, exhaling is crucial. It makes room for more breath. It makes room for more life. I know that when I don’t take the time to exhale ~ to rest ~ that I feel a death of sorts settling in my soul. My quick smile transforms into an even quicker frown. My ‘happy heart’ is no longer bursting forth with joy but is desperately searching for its Center. My light spirit becomes heavy and dark. More energy is necessary to do what is required of me than if I had only taken the time to rest. If I had only exhaled.

So today will be a day to exhale. For you. For me. So that room can be made for Him who is like Oxygen, to bring us to life.

The God who created the cosmos, stretched out the skies, laid out the earth and all that grows from it, Who breathes life into earth's people, makes them alive with his own life. Isaiah 42:5 MSG