I made an “oopsy” as I worked on an upcoming devotional, and instead of scrapping it I’m sharing with you.

Originally, I planned to go through Leviticus 25 to explore “Sabbath Rest”, and later pivoted to highlight other passages in scripture as well; I unintentionally referenced an outdated planning document, and have a “Day 3” that has no home.  The devotional below is preceded by two days exploring Leviticus 25:1-17, and I believe the content is worth sharing even as a stand-alone reflection.

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Leviticus 25:18-28

18 “Therefore you shall do my statutes and keep my rules and perform them, and then you will dwell in the land securely. 19 The land will yield its fruit, and you will eat your fill and dwell in it securely. 20 And if you say, ‘What shall we eat in the seventh year, if we may not sow or gather in our crop?’ 21 I will command my blessing on you in the sixth year, so that it will produce a crop sufficient for three years. 22 When you sow in the eighth year, you will be eating some of the old crop; you shall eat the old until the ninth year, when its crop arrives.

23 “The land shall not be sold in perpetuity, for the land is mine. For you are strangers and sojourners with me. 24 And in all the country you possess, you shall allow a redemption of the land.

25 “If your brother becomes poor and sells part of his property, then his nearest redeemer shall come and redeem what his brother has sold. 26 If a man has no one to redeem it and then himself becomes prosperous and finds sufficient means to redeem it, 27 let him calculate the years since he sold it and pay back the balance to the man to whom he sold it, and then return to his property. 28 But if he does not have sufficient means to recover it, then what he sold shall remain in the hand of the buyer until the year of jubilee. In the jubilee it shall be released, and he shall return to his property.”

REFLECTION

“What shall we eat…?”  It was a valid question from people who knew if they didn’t work the field, the field wouldn’t produce enough food.  God had it all planned out: He’d bless them with such a fruitful sixth year that it would last for three!  God could have provided supernaturally – like the manna and quail in Exodus – yet chose to make the Israelites participants in practical provision.

It did not stop there: God built out practical ways for the Israelites to regain their property.  It was vital in their time to be landowners; when a family lost their land it impacted not just their resources, but their reputation and future opportunities.  In His love for His people, He laid out a system of restoration.

Sabbath rest is not only about watching for God’s miraculous provision, but knowing and trusting the practical paths He has laid out for us.  These paths exist on both individual and communal levels, and while they may seem unspiritual at times, nothing is actually outside the spiritual realm.  What seems like a boring legal arrangement around farm land was actually a profound act of loving God and loving others!

When we practice sabbath rest, let us be mindful not just of what we are not doing, but how we are obeying and honoring God before and after the Sabbath… and how He shows up!

WAYS TO ENGAGE:

• How would you respond if you depended on farming and God told you to refrain for a year?

• How have you experienced God showing up in practical ways?  How do you long for Him to?

• What is a simple way you can trust God’s practical provision today?

Take a moment to pray about these answers.  You can pray something like this: “God, you are able to work through both the miraculous and the practical; help me to understand your plans, and respond with obedience and trust.”