職場和安息日
By Jim Mathis
我們很多人都覺得工作時間不夠用，有些老闆還會希望員工24小時待命。自己當老闆的人更是很難離開自己的工作幾天，甚至是幾個小時都很難，因為我們覺得事情太多，工作做不完。但是只有工作沒有休息是要付出代價的。
研究報告顯示，如果不找時間休息，養精蓄銳，生產力會戲劇性地下降。有一個很實用的諺語說：工欲善其事，必先利其器，就算我們的工作不是伐木，但是大原則是一樣的。我得到工作上很多新的點子，都是在放假的時候，或是下班的時候，因為只有在那個時候我才有時間從一些不同領域的事務中，得到新鮮的點子。
這需要離開我們的工作一些時間，也許是放個假。聖經甚至告訴我們放假是有神聖的意義的。
在聖經創世記當中，神在六天內創造了天地，第七天休息。工作六天，休息一天的概念，在神給摩西的十誡裡面也有提到：「當記念安息日，守為聖日。六日要勞碌做你一切的工，但第七日是向耶和華─你 神當守的安息日。這一日你和你的兒女、僕婢、牲畜，並你城裏寄居的客旅，無論何工都不可做； 因為六日之內，耶和華造天、地、海，和其中的萬物，第七日便安息，所以耶和華賜福與安息日，定為聖日。」(出埃及記20章8-11節).
耶穌之後澄清了安息日的誡命，教導我們尊重安息日並不只是遵守命令而已，安息日是為人所設定的。在這一天人可以休息、反省以及休養，在安息日人們可以放慢腳步享受神所創造的世界。又對他們說：「安息日是為人設立的，人不是為安息日設立的」。(馬可福音2章27節).
幾個世紀以來，原本基督徒所守的安息日，在日曆上從每週的第七天變成每週的第一天，這使我感到困擾，因為我不知道到底是應該在每週的第七天或是第一天休息。一開始我想，大概是日曆標錯了吧！不過，最近我開始覺得安息日是第七天也是第一天，因為我們要尊重安息日是休息的日子。我的太太認為安息日是星期六，在這一天，我們要休息、要恢復精神、要花時間和朋友聚聚、享用一頓放鬆的餐點，或者就是享受活著的感覺。而週日就是榮耀耶穌以及紀念祂復活的日子，這一天就是一週的開始，把一週開始的前幾個小時獻給神，像是獻上初熟的果子一樣。
週六是一週的第七天，也是休息的日子。週日則是每週的第一天，是敬拜神開始一週生活的第一天。對某些人來說，這聽起來也許太激進了，但是對跟隨耶穌的人來說，這是對我們是否相信神和祂的供應的一個考驗。如同詩篇127篇2節向我們所保證的：「你們清晨早起，夜晚安歇，吃勞碌得來的飯，本是枉然；惟有耶和華所親愛的，必叫他安然睡覺。」
實際上來說，我自己也是在週日的下午或晚上開始計畫下一週的計畫，或者為週一做準備。對我來說，週六已經休息過了，所以我把週日的頭幾個小時獻上給神，這是再自然不過的事了。然後，就開始一週的工作，直到週六。真正的安息日是用來休息，讓身心靈三方面都預備好，再開始新的一週。
吉姆.馬提斯在堪薩斯州陸路公園市經營一家照相館。他的專長是商業和影劇界人像。他也經營一所攝影學校。他曾是一家咖啡店的經理，也曾是CBMC在堪薩斯州堪薩斯市和密蘇里州堪薩斯市的執行主任。
反省與問題討論
工作再忙，你通常都能得到充分的休息嗎？你會如何避免工作塞滿一週七天，無時無刻都在工作？ 你覺得要如何在自己的工作生活中，實行文章中提到真正的安息日作息？ 你同意神要我們守安息日，並不是要我們遵守一個困難的規定，而是要保證我們能得到必要的休息嗎？請分享你的答案。 如果你是必須在週六和週日工作的人，例如醫生、警察或是餐廳的員工等等，你要如何確保自己也有安息日？
備註: 如果你手上有聖經，希望能獨更多關於這個主題的經文，請參考：出埃及記23章10-12節、31章14-16節；箴言3章24節；傳道書2章23節、5章12節；希伯來書4章4-11節
THE WORKPLACE – AND THE SABBATH
By Jim Mathis
Many of us struggle with not having enough time to get things done at work. Some employers expect us to be on call 24 hours a day. Self-employed people have an even greater challenge in being able to get away from their work for a few days, or even a few hours. We must put in the time that is needed, we reason. But at what cost?
Studies have shown productivity drops dramatically if we do not take time to rest, to “sharpen our axe.” There is a very practical adage that the fastest way to cut wood is to first set aside time to make certain the axe is sharp. This principle holds true even if you are not in the wood-cutting business. Nearly every new idea I have gotten for my businesses has come while I am on a vacation or away from work, where I had time to gain a new perspective or discover fresh thinking from a totally random, even unrelated source.
This necessity to take time to step away from our work, our vocations, is so important it is even given as a divine directive in the Bible.
In the biblical creation account, God created the world in six days and then rested on the seventh day. The idea of resting on the seventh day was codified when the Ten Commandments were handed down to Moses: “Remember the Sabbath day by keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work…. For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day….” (Exodus 20:8-11).
Jesus later clarified this Sabbath commandment, teaching that honoring the Sabbath is not about following a set of rules, but that the day was established for man – a time of rest, reflection and recuperation, a time to slow down and enjoy the world God has created. “Then he said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath”” (Mark 2:27).
Over the centuries, the idea of the Sabbath for Christians has shifted from the seventh day to the first day of the week. This has been a source of conflict and confusion for me. Should we rest on the seventh day, Saturday, or the first day, Sunday? I thought maybe our calendars are just labeled wrong. Recently, however, I have begun to realize both days are right. We need to honor the seventh day of the week as a day of rest. My wife calls it a REAL Saturday, meaning a day to rest, recuperate, spend time with friends, have a relaxing meal, and just enjoy being alive. Sunday then becomes the day to honor Christ and remember His resurrection. It becomes a time to start the week by giving the first few hours of the week to God, sort of the first fruits of our time – of our week.
Saturday, the seventh day of the week, becomes my day of rest. Sunday, the first day of the week, becomes a time to worship God and start the week right. This idea might sound radical for some, but it can serve as a test of our trust in the Lord and His provision. As Psalm 127:2 assures us, “It is vain for you to rise up early, to retire late, to eat the bread of painful labors; for He gives to His beloved even in his sleep.”
Practically speaking, I often start my work week on Sunday afternoon or evening, planning the week and getting a few things ready for Monday morning. That makes sense for me, realizing I have rested on Saturday and devoted the first few hours of the week to the Lord. Then it becomes time to work until the next Saturday, the true Sabbath in terms of getting rest, preparing mentally, physically, and spiritually for a new week.
Jim Mathis is the owner of a photography studio in Overland Park, Kansas, specializing in executive, commercial and theatrical portraits, and operates a school of photography. Jim is the author of High Performance Cameras for Ordinary People, a book on digital photography. He formerly was a coffee shop manager and executive director of CBMC in Kansas City, Kansas and Kansas City, Missouri.
Reflection/Discussion Questions
Do you normally manage to get enough rest despite the many workplace demands you encounter? What steps do you take to avoid having your work control your attention and schedule seven days a week? How do you respond to the concept of observing and maintaining a true Sabbath within the context of your work week? Do you agree with the idea that God instituted the Sabbath observance not as an arbitrary, rigid regulation, but rather as a practical way to ensure we receive the rest we need? Explain your answer. What if you have a job – such as a medical practitioner, a law enforcement officer, or a restaurant worker – when you would be required to work on a Saturday or a Sunday, or both? How could you still ensure that you receive the Sabbath rest you require?
NOTE: If you have a Bible and would like to read more about this subject, consider the following passages: Exodus 23:10-12, 31:14-16; Proverbs 3:24; Ecclesiastes 2:23, 5:12; Hebrews 4:4-11
