The modern idea of a weekend, and the 5-day work week, has been around for a hundred years or more, but the idea of a “day of rest” is as old as dirt. That was God’s idea. He decided that any hard-working creator, Himself included, should take a day to rest and appreciate what had been created. So He created everything in His six days, and rested on the seventh. And the Sabbath was born.

God considered this Sabbath to be so lovely that He included its protection among His first commands to the Israelites: remember the Sabbath and keep it holy.

I grew up in a culture that called Sunday the Sabbath day. We did things like go to Sunday school and church. Followed by lunch with the family. Then, my parents usually took the “day of rest” part literally and napped. We could play but needed to do so quietly.

I remember observing the Sunday experiences of some of my friends who didn’t attend church and feeling envious. To them, Sunday was just like Saturday where they could sleep in, watch cartoons, and play all afternoon. No need to wake up early, get dressed up, and sit around listening to boring sermons all morning.

And yet the practice has stuck with me. I attended church on Sundays for most of my adult life in every city I moved to. While I was single, and after I got married. A great variety of churches in a great many places. I protected my Sunday mornings.

But the pandemic broke my habit.

I still attend church most Sundays, but because we moved to our current town during the pandemic, the church I attend is live-streamed into my living room. It is a local church, and I could absolutely attend in person now, but do I need to?

“Then he told them, ‘The Sabbath was made for man and not man for the Sabbath.’” (Mark‬ ‭2‬:‭27,‬ ‭CSB‬‬)

The answer to my question lies in my exact reasons for not attending in person. And also in how else I am spending my Sabbath.

Jesus disagreed greatly with the church leadership of his day about the Sabbath. Jesus said the Sabbath is supposed to be a good thing where God is honored and people are blessed and refreshed.

The religious leaders created their own rules about what was and was not allowed on the Sabbath. Those rules ignored the needs of people. They cherished the power their rules gave them more than they cherished God. Jesus said if the rules were so onerous that a person couldn’t even seek healing, they were doing it wrong. Many conflicts ensued, eventually leading to Jesus’ crucifixion.

Am I honoring God when I worship Him from my couch on Sundays? Sometimes. Does God feel like a priority or an afterthought? Can I bless any people from my couch?

Could I honor God better in the pew of a church surrounded by other people who are worshipping Him? Perhaps. Would I have more opportunities to bless and be blessed by others there? Probably. Maybe there’s a third option for that?

While God can be honored from anywhere, perhaps I need to give myself the clearest path to doing so and not just giving in to my lazy nature, saying couch church is good enough.

Dear God, thank you for your desire to bless your people with the refreshment of your presence as we worship you. Teach me how to properly spend my sabbath days. Show me the right ways to honor you with worship and acts of mercy, compassion, and kindness during an intentional break from my regular daily schedule.