Happy New Year!

With the turning of the calendar, there is no shortage of articles on how to prepare for, organize, and manage the coming year.

In one such article, I read about the “Sunday Scaries,” feelings of anxiety that arise on Sunday as we realize that weekend relaxation is almost over and the business of the week looms ahead.

One cure for the “Sunday Scaries” is to follow biblical counsel to honor the Sabbath.

The call to honor the Sabbath Day was included in the Ten Commandments: “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy” Exodus 20:8.

The Sabbath is a day for physical and spiritual rest, a break from routine, an opportunity to raise our sights to eternal goals.

Isaiah promised that we would call the Sabbath a delight as we turn away from the world and turn toward God: “If thou turn away thy foot from the Sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on my holy day; and call the Sabbath a delight, the holy of the Lord, honorable; and shalt honor him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words” 58:13.

The Sabbath is a day for worship.

Jesus taught: “Where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them” Matthew 18:20.

In our weekly worship services we receive emblems of Christ’s body and blood, and in doing so repent of our sins and seek forgiveness. We covenant to take upon ourselves the name of Christ, always remember Him, and keep His commandments, and God promises that we can have His spirit to be with us always.

Elder Paul D. Pieper of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints taught: “Taking upon us the name of Christ is both liberating and enlarging. It awakens the desire we felt when we accepted God’s plan through faith in the Savior. With this desire alive in our hearts, we can discover the real purpose of our divinely given gifts and talents, experience His empowering love, and grow in our concern for the welfare of others.”

The Sabbath is a wonderful time to strengthen family ties. Taking walks, playing games, writing letters, and researching family history can bring family members together. Begin or continue your research at http://www.familysearch.org.

The Sabbath is prime time for gospel teaching and learning as individuals and families.

The Sabbath is also a time for ministering to others. Just as Christ ministered, we too can lift up, encourage, and strengthen friends and neighbors.

May we each find peace and rest through Jesus Christ, the Lord of the Sabbath, Matthew 12:8, by honoring the Sabbath in the coming year!

Brent Roberts is the Elders Quorum President in the Sandy River Branch, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and also Dean of Greenwood Library at Longwood University. He can be reached at brentsroberts@hotmail.com.