The Benefits of Relaxation: Why You Need to Add a Day of Rest to Your Schedule
While I was looking through those papers I uncovered a church flyer for a lecture called "Sabbath Rest and Delight." The picture on it showed a woman leaning on her elbows in a field of grass and wildflowers, her head thrown back, her eyes closed, her mouth parted in a dreamy smile. The picture didn't do much for me. (When I see someone lying in the grass, I don't think, "Ah, happiness." I think, "Whoa, chiggers.") But the words rest and delight struck a chord: Until that afternoon I couldn't remember the last time I'd experienced a real Sabbath, a day set aside for rest. Apart from church -- and, let's face it, getting an entire family dressed and mobilized is no picnic in a blooming meadow -- Sunday at my house is a day for laundry, school projects, grocery-shopping, and getting a head start on the week's work. Not exactly rest, much less delight.
And it's not just me. For most of us these days,...