About Joy

Christians centering our lives of faith in the life we live in the world

Over the past five years or so, I've had this singular conversation with God. About midway through, I got the feeling that he was talking to me about joy.

For a conversation on joy, it started oddly enough. I had decided to read through the Bible from Genesis to Revelation - cover to cover - instead of jumping around as is my normal pattern. In the Books of the Law, for some reason the Sabbath caught my attention. In particular, I was struck by the prohibitive language. Much less a day of rest, more like, "You shall do no work... it is a day for humbling yourself."

I told Tara, "I think God is telling me not to work." Tara replied, "Well, if God told you not to work, you'd better not work."

So, one day a week, I did absolutely no work. No meetings. No computer. No nothing. And then more abstentions were added: food, exercise, entertainment. I filled my day with the Bible and with prayer. In the evening I could serve my family and others. I observed the Sabbath in this way for a full year.

Funny thing. Of all the things from which I fasted, the thing that killed me was fasting from work.

To be continued...