Even decide not to give to the church because you want a certain amount of money for something for yourself, only to suddenly have a car repair, dental issue, or some expense out of the blue that pretty much matches the money withheld from the Lord.  I’ve seen that in my own life, when I was less intentional in my giving patterns.  I’ve had friends who work 7 days a week and then end up flat on their back with back or heart issues, such that they are forced to rest at least as much as they should have! but now they have to suffer through their “rest.” Embedded in the list of consequences for the failure to obey the Lord is this set of statements:

Leviticus 26:34–35 (NIV) — 34 Then the land will enjoy its Sabbath years all the time that it lies desolate and you are in the country of your enemies; then the land will rest and enjoy its Sabbaths. 35 All the time that it lies desolate, the land will have the rest it did not have during the Sabbaths you lived in it.

This is an amazing concept to me that the Lord would could the years of disobedience and rest the land in proportion to their failure to rest the land. This demonstrates the Lord’s priority on the Sabbath rest for all of creation,from the people to the land in which they dwell. Add to that the agricultural significance of allowing a field to go fallow for a season, and God’s commands make all the more sense. it was for the protection of the people AND the land that they keep the Sabbath year.

This cycle of rest is very important for us to follow for our spiritual health and physical health.

Daily Rest

Weekly rest

Seasonal Rest

Sabbath Year

Mid-life Year of Jubilee instead of a mid-life crisis