First, we need rest for our souls. When you are well rested, it makes it easier to accomplish many other things. “Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls.” (6:16)   The ancient paths, the good way all lead back to the Lord.  “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.  Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.”  (Matthew 11:28-29)  Is your soul weighed down by the many anxieties and worries that you carry?  Take time each morning, before the day gets going and in prayer, lay before Christ all that troubles your heart and thank him for the day.  Leave the burdens with him.

Second, we need rest for our minds. If you are like me you spend most of your day juggling thoughts and trying to remember all that you need to do.  Those things must still be done.  But instead of trying to keep them all up in the head.  Write them down, check them off as they are completed.  You will sleep better and have fewer headaches.  Don’t stop there though.  For mental relaxation I take a quick drive to the local lawn and garden center.  I spend about ten minutes near the water fountains (not the ones you drink from).  During one summer, I helped a friend install water features in backyards.  It was normally water splashing down into a pool where sometimes colorful fish swam.  Client after client insisted that the relaxation provided by the sounds of falling, trickling or splashing water instantly relaxed them.  Japanese gardens for centuries, perhaps millennia, have demonstrated that. If that is impractical, purchase a sound effects compact disc that includes waterfalls or the ocean.  Lean back in your chair for merely twenty minutes and emerge mentally reenergized.

Third, we need rest for our bodies. Television is notorious for robbing us of bodily rest.  Turn it off.  Most tv’s can record a show for you.  Study shows that people who regularly get 7-8 hours of sleep live longer than those who sleep for less than seven or more than eight. Enjoy a warm drink and dim lighting 30 minutes before lights out.  Sunday is the day God designed for his people to worship him togther AND to rest from their labors.  Don’t cut grass.  Don’t work out.  No strenuous physical activity at all.  Our bodies need that time to repair, drive out impurities, and restore itself.  Take a nap or rock in a chair.  Buy a hammock on Friday, install it Saturday and swing back and forth on it Sunday (after church J ).

The stresses of this life are real and are demanding.  But we don’t have to succumb to them.  God has graciously given us ways to deal with the strains of the life.  Give rest to your soul by casting upon him the worries and fears on him, because he cares for you.  Give rest to your mind by handling tasks smartly and using creation to melt away the mental fatigue.  Give rest to your body by ceasing from work when it is time and getting enough hours of sleep.  Practicing these will not only lead to longer life but a life better lived where times of peace and tranquility override the noise.

The importance of tranquility in your life is a post from: ABCFastDirectory.com

• First, let the minister lead by example. In most cases, the minister has formal biblical/theological education and is well suited to teach most classes in a church setting. Let them put their training and oratory skills to further use by teaching a class that is either addressing a doctrinal issue or a biblical passage. He can even live on the edge by inviting questions and feedback from the class which is something the lectern can provide that the pulpit cannot! This gives the minister yet another opportunity to connect with the people of the congregation.

• An “Inquirers’ Class” is a great way for visitors to get to know one another, and importantly, other members who may be teaching. Churches have history, for some that history may stretch several decades or if your church is like mine over 200 years. Here they can find out how the church came to be, where it is going, what it believes and teaches and what it is doing. A “graduation” for this class may be in their joining the church or simply continuing to worship with you.

• An adult Bible class is a must in every church. There are a host of great Sunday school curricula to be found on the web, or contact your denominations’ main office and they can direct you to their Christian Education director who can point you in the right direction. These classes usually become second families to those who jump in with both feet usually resulting in fellowship outside the church and great times of learning and sharing within it.

• Another must-have class is a children’s Bible class. Likewise, the minister or the denomination offices are the first places to go in search of good literature that is in step with your church’s system of beliefs and doctrines. It is important to maintain continuity of teaching throughout the congregation. Some curriculum cover the same topics as adults but at different levels so that parents and children know what the other learned and discussion can take place.

Other class options to offer:

• Parenting -Learning to raise your children the way God intended.

• Financial principles – Dave Ramsey and Larry Burkett both come from a biblically oriented way of handling finances and have user friendly materials.

• Learn to share your faith -people are hesitant to talk to others about the good news of Jesus Christ because they have not been trained how.

• Where do I fit in? This class uses spiritual gift inventories tests to determine how God has gifted you for service in his church. Then find where that gift can be best used and plug in!

• Catechism class – This class helps adults and children articulate the truths of the faith with clarity

As you can see there are several ways to make Sunday school classes enjoyable for everyone while providing meaningful opportunities to learn, grow and be part of the church!

How to make Sunday School enjoyable – essential Church Classes is a post from: ABCFastDirectory.com

It would be nice to have that kind of endless energy but God made us to need rest. Just as our bodies are prone to thirst and get hungry, he has provided a way to get rest. Even with all of the nutritional information we have to properly fuel our bodies, there is no substitute for getting rest.

The first way he did this was by giving us the Sabbath Day. In fact, so important is it that God even made it one of the Ten Commandments. On that day, which most Christians recognize to be Sunday, God’s people are to treat that day with special care. Above all things, people are to gather together and worship him with fellow believers. But in addition to that, it is to be a day when we…wait for it… wait for it…. you don’t work! He has given us six days in which to do all our work and labor, but that seventh day we are to walk away from it all, worship Him and rest! Can you believe that? A command to rest!

Can you imagine how nice it would be if your boss at work came in one day, lets say a Monday, and then just told you “You know, I think you are working too hard. Why not take the day off and go to the golf course, my treat?” How good would you feel? Yet, sometimes we forget to be good to ourselves, and then it becomes to easy to become burnt out quickly.

Often times my weeks get very busy and from time to time even my Saturdays are consumed with various demands. I also love the look or a nicely mowed lawn. Seeing the lines from the mower and the crisp, same length grass bring a funny joy to my heart. But I won’t cut the grass on Sunday because God has told me to rest. I’ll make sure I get it done on Saturday, so then I can get a full day of rest on Sunday.

There were periods even during the ministry of Jesus when he would stop, steal away to the quiet mountain area, rest and pray. Sometimes he would take some, not all, of the disciples with him that not only would he spend special time with them but teach them this valuable lesson. He left the clamoring crowds, yes even the sick who were in need of healing. There will always be those who need your help, always. There will always be one who needs some advice, needs a helping hand, an extra hour, a small project, a quick errand or one more phone call. The need may even be legitimate.

Sometimes, you need to walk away, go to a quiet place and rest. It may only be for an hour, perhaps a day or maybe even a week. When people take extended time off it is even called a sabbatical. In our technological world with Blackberry’s, I-Pods, wireless laptops and so forth, we need to disconnect from it all and turn it off.

Last year a friend of our family gave us a wonderful gift, a week’s stay at their mountain home. The scenery is breathtaking, the air is cool and there is no cell phone signal. You might guess that we will take up any and all future invitations to use that home.

Your body needs to have a time where few demands are placed upon it, only the basics. Rest, eat and repeat ought to be the mantra of taking time away. Rarely to do people get the physician recommended 8 hours of sleep so be sure to get that. Your mind needs to not have the constant pressure of work no matter your vocation. But perhaps even more so, the stress that our hearts encounter when we go, go, go can actually lead to physical illness or worse. So, joyfully obey the commands of God, worship him and rest. He is the Great Physician and that is his prescription for our lives.

Be good to yourself. Rest, and you will see amazing results and changes in your life.

How ‘keeping the Sabbath Holy’ can actually help you, not just because the Bible says so is a post from: ABCFastDirectory.com