The Sabbath was made for man not Man for the Sabbath

From
July 1, 2021

From the Pastor

Wow. June was a big month in some ways. In the past few weeks, the mask mandate was lifted for those who are fully vaccinated, we’ve reinstituted singing in our worship services, our school held an outdoor commencement followed by a kid carnival, we held an online-only society meeting with great attendance, and we celebrated New Church Day with barbecue, cake, and hanging out with friends. It’s all good stuff…and I’m ready for a little quiet. Know what I mean?

We are created to work best in cycles. The human mind is not meant to operate at a single level of intensity for all time. A great example is the Old Testament command that after every six days of work there be one day of rest. As the Lord said Himself in Mark 2:27 (and elsewhere), “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.” This command is for our benefit. Seasons exist for similar reasons, as do times of day, fluctuations of weather, and all sorts of other natural cycles. A static life ceases to be life, even if that “stasis” is made up of something good.

A movie or novel that is all climax with no buildup is flat. Music doesn’t work if you don’t have a variety of pitch, volume, and duration. Punchlines in comedy don’t work without setups, even if sometimes a lot of the setup is merely implied.

So, June was a good month. And July is going to be a good month for a different reason. In June, a lot of big stuff happened. In July? Well, I can’t predict world events, pandemics, or the decisions of civil authorities, but I can predict this: I’m not planning anything big for the church. There will be some small steps here and there. And we will continue to gather weekly on Sundays to worship the Lord. We will continue to gather weekly on Wednesdays to hang out together and enjoy one another’s company. The website will get an update. And in late July, I want to start working again with singers and musicians on growing our music program.

But primarily, we’ll be using this month at the church to do some rest and reflection. I hope your summer is restful as well.

Rev. Glenn “Mac” Frazier
Pastor, Washington New Church
2021-06-22