As a faith practice, Sabbath, which is God’s gift to us, is a time set apart to rest from work, to worship God, to tend to our soul, and to bless others.

Pick and choose from the ideas below to shape a worship service or plan a series. Also see our Worship Service on Sabbath and Intergenerational Activities on the Faith Practice of Sabbath.

Sermon Supports

• Foundational Essay: Sabbath: The Gift of Restoration and Realignment
• Bible passages
  • Exodus 20:8-11: Sabbath rest is a gift from God
  • Mark 2:23-28: The sabbath is made for you
  • Luke 6:6-11: The sabbath is a day for healing
  • Psalms of Rest
• Additional Helpful Resources from the Faith Practices Project

Music Suggestions

(We’ve indicated the songs from our hymnal Lift Up Your Hearts with “LUYH.”)

• “A Christian’s Daily Prayer” by Sovereign Grace
• “Come Away from Rush and Hurry” (LUYH)
• “Come to Me, O Weary Traveler” (LUYH)
• “Come to Me” by Rain for Roots (featuring Sandra McCracken)
• “Goodness of Jesus” by City Alight
• “It Is Good to Sing Your Praises” (LUYH)
• “Like a River Glorious” (LUYH)
• “Lord, I Give You My Heart” by Reuben Morgan
• “My Soul Finds Rest” (LUYH)
• “My Soul Will Wait” by Sovereign Grace
• “Nothing to Fear” by Audrey Assad
• “Slow Me Down” by Porter’s Gate
• “Song of Hope” (LUYH)
• “Your Labor Is Not in Vain” by Porter’s Gate

Worship Ideas

• Take time. Remove or cover all the clocks in your worship area. Imagine together a day in which you never checked the time. How might such a day help you practice Sabbath? Encourage worshipers to consider trying that this week at home, even if it means setting a timer for a block of no-checking-the-time time!
• Ponder Praise. Arrange for a child to read aloud Let the Whole Earth Praise God by Tomie DePaola.
• Be still. Invite everyone to get comfortable where they are seated and to take slow, deep breaths as a way to calm their heads, hands and hearts. Then, using a sentence from Psalm 46:10 as a breath prayer, invite everyone to silently say the words “be still and know” with each breath in and “that I am God” with each breath out. Sit in the silence together for a moment before ending this time of stillness and prayer. Mention that this form of prayer can be a helpful way to enter a time of stillness with God at home too.
• Share Sabbath stories. In advance, invite two or three members to share a way they have found it helpful to practice Sabbath. How has their practice changed over time? What have they learned about God? About themselves?
• Imagine a day. Hold up a bell and invite everyone to imagine that when it chimes, each of them have been gifted with time (5 minutes to a full day, their choice) away from work, chores, or other duties. Your time away can be used to delight in the goodness of God through rest, worship, self-care, and/or the blessing of others. What would you do? How would you feel? That’s Sabbath rest! Try it this week.

• Find rest. Experience a micro-sabbath together as you listen to the Rain for Roots song Come to Me (featuring Sandra McCracken).

Take-it-Home Resources

Encourage and equip people to continue exploring this faith practice by providing them with a resource to take home. Some ideas:

• Coloring pencils or crayons and printouts of Praying in Color doodled prayer templates for people who enjoy coloring (and whoever would like to try it) as a way to practice Sabbath rest.
• Small bottles of bubbles with wands for experiencing the joy of Sabbath rest at home.
• 5 Ways to Practice Sabbath with Kids for each household with children.
• The booklet Faith Practices: Holy Habits That Help Us Love God and Our Neighbor, Listen to the Spirit, and Become More Like Jesus.

Digital Images You Can Use

Use these memes for PowerPoint presentations, social media shares, print pieces, and so on.