Verse 7 "On the 10th day of the seventh month hold a sacred assembly. You must deny yourselves and do no work."
God demands that the people stop working and take a break to worship. This text can be understood in two ways. Denying oneself probably means to fast, which means to not eat. It also could mean that when we stop working we are denying ourselves of the opportunity for gain. (Money, status, etc.) I'm not really sure what it means, but since it's my blog I'm going to suggest it's the second meaning.
Americans are hard workers. They work long days and long weeks. They take fewer and shorter vacations then most of the world... and definitely shorter vacations than their parents did.
Why do we feel like we have to work so hard? Because we like big, expensive stuff. Houses are getting bigger, cars are getting more expensive and everything else is following suit. Yesterday I just re-newed my satellite subscription for my truck... who would have thought of that 10 years ago? Paying to listen to the radio? I got it free for a year, now I can't live without ESPN radio and all the NFL games. I was able to listen to the Lions' game on Sunday while driving around Texas... it was great!
To afford our chosen way of living we work hard. My wife and I both.
Taking a break from work is in fact denying ourselves. When we stop working, we stop earning. Many of us are on salary so our pay isn't tied directly to our effort, but our bonus is, or our promotion.
It's true that we were created to work. Adam was given a job in the garden. But we were also created to rest and re-charge. We were created to enjoy what this playgorund that God created and to enjoy what we have earned.
So take a break. Deny yourself. And enjoy every second of it.
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