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The kingdom of God has practices and postures different from that of our broken world. Sabbath is one of those rhythms that enable us to enter into and experience the kingdom of God on earth as it is in heaven. Practicing Sabbath forms us in faith and leaves us looking more like the resurrected image bearers of the resurrected Christ we were meant to be. So we invite you to Sabbath, to take a 24-hour deep breath.

Following is a liturgy for you to use to enter into "sacred time," as well as a liturgy to end Sabbath. A few suggestions:

1) Plan on starting Sabbath on Saturday evening—perhaps at sunset, or just before bed—and plan on ending Sabbath at the same time on Sunday. But if that doesn’t work, no problem! For example, parents with young children might want to begin and end at supper. Or you might begin on Sunday morning and end on Sunday night. Do what’s works best for you. The point is to take some time to stop and rest.
 
2) The liturgy we provide includes two simple rituals. You will need 2 candles, as well as something that smells good that you can pass around. For example, it could be a bowl of spices, or a bowl of ground coffee, or cinnamon sticks. Get creative! But have something that offers up a pleasant aroma.
​About Sabbath:

At its core, observing Sabbath is about becoming faith-fully present to God, to the world, to yourself, and to your neighbours. Sabbath is a “beautiful fast” in which we stop what we’re doing in order to become attentive to the ways in which the Spirit is present and working to bring the kingdom of God on earth as it is in heaven. Lots of very, very good things take place as we enter a rhythm of keeping sabbath:
  • We come home to God:  Observing Sabbath is about being attentive to God.
  • We come home to ourselves:  Sabbath helps us to see Who we belong to, so we can begin to see and rest in who we truly are: fully alive human beings made to freely bear the image of God in the likeness of Christ (see Matthew 11:28-29).
  • We come home to community: Sabbath fosters a humble posture of attentiveness to others; we are re-membered as part of a community.
  • We come home to the Kingdom: Sabbath rest is the practice that makes the patterns of kingdom living permanent in our lives.
You can find out more about the practice of Sabbath here:
  • ENTERING SABBATH
  • LEAVING SABBATH
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