I wrote an article for Charisma Magazine that appeared in its March 2018 Magazine entitled Sabbath Rest Is More Than A Command. I will post it in two parts today and tomorrow due to its length. Rest is a part of the cycle of life that God wove into the fabric of creation. We have days for work, and nights for rest. We have summers full of blooming plants, flowers, and trees, and winters of agricultural quiet. This rhythm of being active and then resting is a necessary balance

Draw near to God and He will draw near to you…( James 4:8) Our desires are created by our focus. I learned this truth during a time of personal struggle way back in 1982. The previous year I had taken a volunteer position as an associate pastor in a small church. I had taken this position after just graduating from one of the Bible schools I attended. I later realized that I had missed God’s best. The experience left me empty and disappointed. I didn’t want to read my Bible,

Bless the Lord, you His angels, who excel in strength, who do His word, heeding the voice of His word (Psalm 103:20). We are not alone. Not only do we have the Spirit of God to enable us and help us from within, but we also have the help of the angels of God from without. The angel of the Lord encamps all around those who fear Him, and delivers them (Psalm 34:7). For He shall give His angels charge over you, to keep you in all your ways. In their hands they shall bear you