Why The Fourth Commandment Holds the Key to Freedom

I felt like a slave.

I wasn’t doing any hard labor. I didn’t spend long hours in the sun.

But I felt just as exhausted at the end of the day.

I spent nearly an hour in traffic commuting to work, risking my life and destroying my car—the cost of suburban living and urban work.

I was stressed out before I even got to my job which was often stressful itself.

Then another hour in traffic.

I fought going to sleep because that meant the next day would come sooner.

I didn’t even notice how tired I really was until I changed jobs. I had become accustomed to it.

I had accepted it.

Rest Means Freedom

We don’t often realize we are held in bondage if the chains are metaphysical. The chains of alcoholism, workaholism and lust may not be material, but they are real.

Get More Out of Church: 5 Practical Steps

Do you desire a more meaningful church experience on Sunday?

Vinoth Chandar (cc)

Last week we looked at one way to accomplish that goal. Here are five more ways:

1. Expect to hear from God

Pray that God will send His Spirit and speak to the congregation.

And then expect that He will.

If you don't have faith that God is going to speak to you then why go to church at all?

Jesus says in Matthew 7:7 to “ask, and it shall be given you” (KJV). Ask that God would speak to the congregation and then attend in anticipation.

It may not happen every Sunday, but if you never ask will you ever receive?

2. Get plenty of rest

Getting enough rest helps ensure that you will be engaged in worship and focused during the sermon—not to mention a lot less likely to make a fool of yourself by snoring in church.

The fourth commandment tells us to rest, but if you begin the night before, you will have a better church experience.

Besides that, it will make the next step much easier.

1 Way to Get More Out of Church

Have you ever left a church service and thought to yourself, “Well that was a waste of time”?

I have.

Lest we get confused, this is not a limitation on God’s part. And it is rarely anyone else’s fault either. No, this is on us.

Photo Credit: Chad Kainz (Creative Commons)

So here is one way I have found to help avoid these instances when I feel something is lacking on Sunday:

5 Reasons Sunday Still Matters

A couple years ago, God showed me how important Sunday is.

At my old church, the pastor encourages the congregation to text him questions related to the bible or theology on Sunday mornings. At the end of service he answers as many as he can.

Matt Jiggins (CC)

One Sunday before the service, he asked me if I had a question for him.

I had texted him questions in the past, but I wasn't planning to send him one that day. Yet when he asked, I remembered a question that I had been pondering for a while. So I texted him the following:

Why did Jesus weep at the death of Lazarus if He knew He was going to bring him back to life?

To be honest, I can scarcely even remember how he answered the question. What I do remember is what happened afterward.

Why Sunday Is Not As Important As You Think

Some say the Sabbath is Saturday. Some say it is Sunday. 

Which is it? If we are going to keep it holy, we kind of need to know, right?

The answer, actually, is irrelevant.