As we wrap up this week of reflections on Soul Sabbath, I want to share with you a few thoughts about what I’ll call the Sabbath Shift we’re invited to make in our lives. It’s a shift in our thinking and perspective, and a shift in gears… into something slower, where you can take in the landscape as you move along, and participate in the wonder of life instead of feeling as though it is just being hurled at you. I find these thoughts from Mark Buchanan about the art of Sabbath-keeping to be helpful:

“What makes Sabbath time different from all other time? Simple: a shift in our thinking, an altering of our attitudes. Before we keep a Sabbath day, we cultivate a Sabbath heart. A Sabbath heart sanctifies time. This is not a ritual. It’s a perspective. And it’s not a shift in circumstances… You make a deliberate choice to shift point of view, to come at your circumstances from a fresh angle and with greater depth of field. You choose to see your life otherwise, through a different lens, from a different standpoint, with a different mind-set… We become more ourselves in the presence of Sabbath: more vulnerable, less afraid. More ready to confess, to be silent, to be small, to be valiant.”

That’s what this entire Soul-Centered idea is about: becoming more ourselves. But that requires a degree of stillness so that we can be more fully authentic - not just about who we are with others, but about what we think about ourselves. That’s not to say that we become self-centered or self-indulgent. But it’s important that we reflect on our true selves. The thing is, if you believe each of us is created in God’s image, then spending time reflecting on the image within us becomes sacred time. It is an act of experiencing God in the commonplace… in life… even in me.

Daily prayer: Lord, help Me see Myself as Gift and Reflection of You.