The renewal of all things
So God blessed the seventh day and hallowed it, because on it
God rested from all the work that he had done. Genesis 2:3
Read Isaiah 65:17—19, 23—25
At the end of this day I prepare to rest. I hope that my rest can be a fitting conclusion to the active life of the day, to what I have said and done, what I have taken from others and given to others. It would be good if I don’t have to just blot out the day and wish it never happened, but rather properly conclude it, and bring it to a fullness. In the account of God the creator the story ends with the Sabbath, the day of God’s rest, when he stopped, when he enjoyed his work. The whole creation moves toward the Day of the Lord, God’s enjoyment of it. And, as one who is in Christ Jesus, even I head toward that, too, the Sabbath rest, the enjoyment of all that God has made and done.
Prayer
Lord of all creation, I love what you have made and done. Every calling bird, every leafy shrub, the vegetables that grow beneath the ground and the fruits I can pick from the vine. The garden walk, the stilling stream. The breadth of the outback. Yes, it’s good as it comes from your hand, and it’s home for me. Then again, I sense that there is more. That what I know bears the seed and promise of something I can only imagine from it, a flowering and a harvest when you bring to a conclusion the renewal of all things. Your kingdom come.