The Hebrew word for sabbath is the world ‘Shabbat’ which means to ‘stop’ and to ‘delight’. To sabbath is to follow in God’s example of taking time to stop and delight.

If you found the cure to a terminal disease you would want to share it with the world. In the same way, we have found the cure to the human soul, and it’s not a medicine - it’s a person called Jesus.

Scripture does not command Christians to fast. God does not require or demand it of Christians. At the same time, the Bible presents fasting as something that is good, profitable, and beneficial. Fasting helps us gain a new perspective and a renewed dependence on God.

We all have different priorities, but we all have similar ones also. As we mature we begin to prioritise four common things in our world. Each of these things typically have worries attached to them. Total stewardship is recognising that everything I have is from God, belongs to God, and is not greater than God. Whatever we worship, we also give our worry to. When we put God first, our worries and stresses are with Him.

In Luke, we see that Jesus’ disciples recognize a pattern of behaviour in Jesus. He is regularly taking himself away to pray. The disciples recognise a correlation between Jesus’ prayer life and His ability to live the life He is living, to perform the miracles He is performing, to love the way He is loving. There is something different about Jesus when He prays.

When Jesus preached the message of repentance, people were drawn to Him, not repelled from him - people came closer to Him, not further from Him. It is a truth that transforms our hearts.

Our lives are just like clay, they are easily shaped and formed. The only question is, who or what have you allowed to shape or form it? One of the greatest ways God transforms your life is through his Word - through reflective reading of the Bible.

In Colossians, Paul sees the danger of living separate from community. The greatest way our relationship with Jesus is going to grow is not only through personal time with God but with community time with others. In Christ-centred community we encourage each other towards growing in Christ.