By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. Then God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done.
Genesis 2:2-3
Ever wonder why many businesses are closed on Saturday and Sunday? For a very long time, Saturday has always been perceived as a day off. Where did that start?
I believe that started way back in the beginning of time, when God created the world. In the beginning, God designed us to work for 6 days, and to take the 7th day off. Many other businesses are still open on the weekend, so employees are given a different day off. Many take every Thursday off as their day of rest, but the same logic applies. They work for 6 days, and take the 7th day off.
We as humans were not designed to work at our jobs 7 days a week. We would quickly burn out. We need to take that one day to rest and recharge, so we can start a new week.
In the United States, many businesses have taken this a step further by also taking the first day of the week, Sunday, as a day to worship. The idea is to dedicate the first day of the week to God. This is why many also have Sunday off work.
In the Bible, we can read that, in the Jewish nation, there were very severe penalties for anyone who was caught working on Saturday. It was their Sabbath day. They were commanded by God to take that day off as a day of rest. In our culture, the rule is not quite a strict. If you are caught working on a Saturday, you will not be put to death like the Jews were; however, the concept still applies to us. God did not design humans to work 7 days a week.
So, this week, whether your "day off" falls on Saturday or any other day of the week, let's take a few minutes that day to thank God for giving us that day off to relax, recharge, and prepare to start a new week.
