“For six years you shall sow your land and gather in its yield, but the seventh year you shall let it rest and lie fallow, that the poor of your people may eat; and what they leave the beasts of the field may eat. You shall do likewise with your vineyard, and with your olive orchard. Six days you shall do your work, but on the seventh day you shall rest; that your ox and your donkey may have rest, and the son of your servant woman, and the alien, may be refreshed” (Exodus 23:10-12, ESV).
God gave Israel Ten Commandments. Most Christians will at least verbally acknowledge nine of them. (We say coveting is a sin, but most Americans treat it like a sacrament.) God said, “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy,” but many of us will say, “That was just for the Jews. Let’s go shopping after church! Why is Chick-Fil-A closed?”
Hard work is part of the American ideal, but we do not value rest. Americans work more hours than people in most countries, yet we are not legally entitled to any paid vacation or holidays. Many of our employers provide these benefits—some are quite generous—but I wonder how many Americans actually receive the 38 paid vacation days and holidays that are mandatory in Austria.
It is easy for us to fall into the burnout trap. We can even allow things we love doing to become an obligation. When burnout hits, we can just begin to coast along, with no sense of direction or clarity.
God commanded the Jews to rest on the Sabbath. Every Saturday, they were commanded to rest: They were not allowed to do any work; they could not make their servants work. They were supposed to relax, worship God, and get refreshed.
He also commanded the Jews to take a “Sabbath rest” every seven years. After seven years, farmers were not supposed to plant anything: during that resting year, they could eat whatever grew on its own. According to God, even the land needed to rest. (From what I understand, this is the inspiration behind the modern agricultural practice of crop-rotation; it allows part of the field to recover after years of usage, and avoids depleting it by varying the crops grown in a particular area.)
As a writer, every now and then I find my well running dry. I try to post something every Sunday, but some weeks I have no fresh ideas. Other times, I lose motivation.
Although we are not under law, but under grace (Romans 6:14), we can learn a lot from the Old Testament. Jesus said, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. So the Son of Man is lord even of the Sabbath.” Even though Jesus freed His disciples from the burden of legalism regarding the Sabbath, He acknowledged that it should be a blessing.
With that in mind, inspired (in principle, if not in time-span) by Exodus 23:10, I will begin instituting some Sabbath months into my writing ministry. Every seven months, beginning in August 2017, I will take some time away from writing blog posts. This will allow me time to weigh ideas for series or other ways to keep readers interested.
During my Sabbath months, I intend to repost older articles, with minimal updating. I plan to have them finished in my drafts folder before the month begins, so that I can just click “publish” and move along.
When I return in September, I plan to begin writing several series of posts. They would be based on ideas I have had for books, which may not have the commercial demand for traditional publication. The blogosphere is not affected by exactly the same set of market forces that drive the religious-book-publishing industry. Topics that have been covered by other authors in the past, or that may be too long for an article but too brief for an entire book, often find life online.
For my friends and family who have encouraged me to publish a book: I have a few other more unique ideas for books. I plan to write those, separate from this blog, and pursue more traditional publishing routes for them. More news as those projects develop.
For those of you with whom I have connected through the world of blogging: Thank you for your words of encouragement, comments, and for clicking the “Like” button.
It may not be a completely perfect approach. But, perhaps all of us should consider looking at our commitments and ask God, “Should I take some time away from this? Do I need a season of refreshing?”
This post copyright © 2017 Michael E. Lynch. All rights reserved.
Darkened Glass Reflections 
Keeping the Trolls Under the Bridge
The internet has brought many benefits to society. Thanks to social media, we can keep in touch with old friends whom we would probably never see again if not for Facebook or similar sites. If you need information quickly (or are just mildly curious about something), a quick Google search will provide links to numerous articles about the subject.
Fifteen years ago, if I wanted to publish a book or article, I would have to submit it to a publisher and hope they accept my work. If they agreed to publish my work, it could take months before anybody could read it. Today, I can write an article on this blog and watch it reach people across the globe within a few days.
On the other hand, the internet has its downsides. It used to be easy to know which sources were trustworthy; now, it has become so hard to discern serious journalism from fake news, that most people merely put their faith in whatever websites reaffirm their presuppositions. Also, while blogs and other websites give almost everybody a platform, it has provided an opportunity for trolls to stop hiding under bridges.
When I was growing up, “trolls” were creatures in fairy tales. Many of the memorable ones were big scary ones who lived under bridges or hid in the woods, pouncing on unsuspecting travelers. The term has now been applied to persons who pounce on people across the internet. In a recent post on publishing-industry blog The Scholarly Kitchen, Kent Anderson describes them as follows:
There seem to be several kinds of trolls. Some jump at any opportunity to respond to an online article with a full-fledged verbal assault. They may hate the writer, or those who share his worldview, so much that they will simply bully and harass total strangers with demonic hatred. Others may just have a personal agenda they are trying to push, and will try to lure people into arguments. Maybe they just like arguing. Maybe they think they have stumbled upon some truth that they must share, and will hijack anybody’s platform to get their point across. Some may simply have too much free time on their hands and want to waste their time showing off how smart they think they are online.
Christians circles are not devoid of trolls. Far too often, the discussion about an article on a Christian website deteriorates rapidly: a few people thank the author for his wisdom, encouragement, or insight; another shares how the subject relates to a crisis he/she endured in the past or recently; another politely challenges one or two of the author’s points, citing Scripture verses and asking how the author responds; another attacks the author, or one of the commenters. Before you know it, people accuse one another of blatant heresy, and at least three evangelists have damned one another to hell. The author of the blog is trying to glorify God and draw his readers to Christ, but some of his followers have given spiritual seekers very valid reasons to go looking elsewhere for truth and give up on Christ. The most hostile commenters, of course, do it supposedly “to the glory of God.”
Such trolling has no place in the Kingdom of God. In his pastoral epistles, Paul warned Timothy and Titus to avoid arguments and controversies. Titus 3:9 (at the top of this post) is just one example of this instruction:
While I welcome discussion, I have no time for arguments or fights. I have better ways to use my time and am not interested in wasting it on debates. I can devote only a few hours per week to blogging and refuse to waste my precious time.
With this in mind, I have adjusted a setting on this blog to require moderation for all comments before they appear “live.” To ensure that your comment is approved, please follow these guidelines:
By sharing these guidelines with you, I am binding myself to live by them as well. I hope this will encourage discussion, thoughts, and feedback whereby we may all grow in God’s grace. I hope I am able to bless those who read this blog, and look forward to being blessed and exhorted by you as well.
This post copyright © 2017 Michael E. Lynch. All rights reserved.
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