. . . prayer, especially meditation and contemplative prayer, is not so much a way to find God as a way of resting in him whom we have found, who loves us, who is near to us, who comes to us to draw us to himself.
From: Thomas Merton, Contemplative Prayer
For this is the cause why we be not all in ease of heart and soul: that we seek here rest in those things that are so little, wherein is no rest, and know not our God that is All-mighty, All-wise, All-good. For He is the very rest. God willeth to be known, and it pleaseth Him that we rest in Him; for all that is beneath Him sufficeth not us. And this is the cause why that no soul is rested till it is made nought as to all things that are made. When it is willingly made nought, for love, to have Him that is all, then is it able to receive spiritual rest.
from: Julian of Norwich, Revelations of Divine Love
We know we need rest, but we can no longer see the value of rest as an end in itself; it is only worthwhile if it helps us recharge our batteries so we can be even more efficient in the next period of productivity…
The ancients knew the value of spaciousness for its own sake…Sabbath was meant to be a day of spaciousness in form, time and soul. It was to be an uncluttered day, a day not filled up, a day of rest and appreciation, a day of freedom just to be.
From: Gerald May, The Awakened Heart
The goal of hallowing Sunday[/Sabbath] is the Sunday rest. God wants to lead God’s people to God’s own rest, to relax from the earthly workday…. Freed from imperfect human effort, the people of God are to gaze on the completed pure work of God and to participate in it. As a reflection and promise of this eternal rest with the Creator and Redeemer of the world, the Christian who keeps Sunday holy is permitted to experience Sunday rest.
From: Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Conspiracy and Imprisonment, 1940-1945, p 644
Every time we turn to Christ in faith it is like a moment of Sabbath, a little foretaste of eternal rest and glory. The gift of that moment lies not in what we do but what we receive. It is the holy time set aside to receive the greatest gift of God ever has to give, which is himself, in his own beloved Son.
From: Phillip Cary, Good News for Anxious Christians: Ten Practical Things You Don’t Have to Do
Rest
The best prayer is to rest in the goodness of God, knowing that that goodness can reach down to our lowest depths of need.
From: Julian of Norwich, Revelations of Divine Love
Perhaps … the Sabbath is mean to be—a disruption. Perhaps God deliberately inserted a day meant for rest—rest—because he had to make it sacred for him if we were to observe it as a day of rest for us. We need a day of rest for our physical and emotional well-being … We need a day of rest for our spiritual well-being, a time to reflect, pray, fast, and talk with God and with our families about God. We need a day of rest to instruct and encourage one another…. We need a day of rest to welcome God’s blessing for ourselves, for our churches, for our communities, and for our nations. We need a day of rest to define ourselves as the people of God … Observing the Sabbath would mean upset and disruption. But that is what God intended it to be – a disruption of those hectic, crazy schedules.
See the full article at – http://www.thehighcalling.org/faith/disruption-sabbath#.VMJGBP54qHc
Sabbath observance invites us to stop. It invites us to rest. It asks us to notice that while we rest, the world continues without our help. It invites us to delight in the world’s beauty and abundance.
From: Wendell Berry
Once people feel nourished and refreshed, they cannot help but be kind; just so, the world aches for the generosity of a well-rested people.
From: Wayne Muller, Sabbath: Restoring the Sacred Rhythm of Rest
See also – http://inwardoutward.org/2014/09/01/seeking-approval-2/