The Importance of Rest Days

Lent on the Run — Day 34

Apr 12, 2025

Remember the sabbath day, and keep it holy. For six days you shall labour and do all your work. But the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God; you shall not do any work
— Exodus 20:8–10a

A time-honored tradition—no, not The Masters—but me hearing I need to take a day off. That I need rest days. But what do “rest days” even mean?

In scripture, we see that we should rest because God rested during creation. We read, “You shall not do any work…” Yet, that seems an inadequate understanding of a day off—or a rest day.

I just shouldn’t be doing anything? That seems less productive than being busy all the time.

But maybe that’s the point. Maybe Sabbath isn’t about doing nothing, but about doing something different—something restorative. Maybe it’s not about stepping away from productivity but stepping into presence.

In running, rest days are vital—not because the body is lazy, but because it’s in the rest that we recover, rebuild, and grow stronger. Without rest, we risk injury. We plateau. We burn out. The same is true of our souls.

Rest days—Sabbaths—aren’t just about checking out. They’re about tuning in. To joy. To connection. To God. They’re about reclaiming our humanity in a world that treats us like machines.

So maybe on a rest day, you take a walk instead of a run. You linger over coffee. You pray without rushing. You read for the pleasure of it. You breathe a little deeper. You laugh a little longer. You trust that your worth isn’t found in your output, but in your being.

God didn’t rest because God was tired. God rested because rest is holy. It’s a rhythm built into the heartbeat of creation. And we are invited to keep time with it.