Keeping the Sabbath

The steps

Go at your own pace. Read each scripture in context if you can, and come back to any step as often as you need.

1. 1

   Step 1: Remember it ahead of time

   Prepare during the week: shopping, chores, and homework done early make room for rest. Decide what you'd like the day to include.

   Scripture

   • “Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.”

   Reflect

   What usually crowds out rest on my Sabbath?

   Try this

   Before your next Sabbath, finish one task early that usually spills into it.

   Write your response

   Before your next Sabbath, finish one task early that usually spills into it.

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2. 2

   Step 2: Rest from your usual work

   Set aside the work and errands of the other six days. Rest is not laziness; God Himself rested.

   Scripture

   • Genesis 2:2–3
   • Exodus 20:9–10

   Reflect

   What does real rest look like for me, in body and in mind?

   Try this

   Choose one usual activity to set aside this Sabbath.

   Write your response

   Choose one usual activity to set aside this Sabbath.

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3. 3

   Step 3: Worship with others

   Gather with your congregation to worship. For many Christians, this includes taking the sacrament or communion in remembrance of the Savior.

   Scripture

   • “Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together”

   • “this do in remembrance of me.”

   • Doctrine and Covenants 59:9

   Reflect

   What helps me truly worship during services, not just attend?

   Try this

   Before your next worship service, think of one thing you want to bring to the Lord.

   Write your response

   Before your next worship service, think of one thing you want to bring to the Lord.

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4. 4

   Step 4: Make it a delight

   Fill the day with things that lift you toward God: time with family, uplifting music, nature, scripture, rest. Let it be a day you look forward to.

   Scripture

   • “call the sabbath a delight”

   Reflect

   What makes a Sabbath feel like a delight to me and my family?

   Try this

   Plan one simple, joyful Sabbath activity, like a walk, a shared meal, or singing hymns.

   Write your response

   Plan one simple, joyful Sabbath activity, like a walk, a shared meal, or singing hymns.

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5. 5

   Step 5: Do good

   Jesus healed and served on the Sabbath. Visit someone lonely, write a note, or help a neighbor.

   Scripture

   • “The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath”

   • “it is lawful to do well on the sabbath days.”

   Reflect

   Who could use a visit, call, or note from me this Sabbath?

   Try this

   Do one quiet act of service on your next Sabbath.

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   Do one quiet act of service on your next Sabbath.

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6. 6

   Step 6: Reflect on the week ahead

   Take a few quiet minutes to look back on the week and forward to the next. Ask God what to focus on.

   Scripture

   • “Come ye yourselves apart into a desert place, and rest a while”

   Reflect

   What did God teach me this past week? What do I want to carry into the next?

   Try this

   End your Sabbath by writing one goal for the coming week.

   Write your response

   End your Sabbath by writing one goal for the coming week.

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