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REFLECTION 

‘Pressing  the reset button’ is the theme for our reflection today. To reset means to move something back to an original place or position. It may also mean to start afresh. We shall discover that a critical study of the law concerning the weekly observation of Sabbath according to Exodus 20:8 has two important factors. The first is to ensure that human beings and animals used for farm work rest and secondly, believers honour God, meditate on His Word and reflect on their relationship with Him. In the same manner, today’s Scripture extends the law of the Sabbath to every seventh year and the focus is to allow the land used for farming to remain fallow for a year . “The LORD said to Moses at Mount Sinai, ² “Speak to the Israelites and say to them: ‘When you enter the land I am going to give you, the land itself must observe a sabbath to the LORD. ³ For six years sow your fields, and for six years prune your vineyards and gather their crops. ⁴ But in the seventh year the land is to have a year of sabbath rest, a sabbath to the LORD. Do not sow your fields or prune your vineyards. (Leviticus 25:1-4). Obviously, as the land remains fallow the farmer and animals used for farming will rest. The society then focuses on their relationship with one another and their relationship with God. Imagine returning to work after a whole year fully revitalised emotionally, physically, psychologically and spiritually. The process of achieving the aforementioned Sabbatical importance is what we refer to as pressing the reset button. Learning to press the reset button allows us to overcome the stress and mental health issues we go through as a result of continuous work in a stressful environment.

 Many believers focus so much on their work to the extent that they have little or no attention for their health and their relationship with God. It is important to take a break after days, weeks and years of continuous work. God is able to provide all our needs during our time of break. The Israelites were assured that during the time of the Sabbath the field or land will produce food on its own for them to eat, they need not work it (Leviticus 25: 5-7). This the act of trusting God to supply our needs according to His grace and divine providence. Anxiety makes people doubt their faith in God, some people chase after endless acquisition of wealth by working day and night without resting and having time for their health, spiritual lives and family. Jesus teaches us that “Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble. (Matthew 6:31-34)

Again, as we press the rest button, the land also rests and goest through a period of restoration. We sometimes overburden the soil with continues farming. We are greatly encouraged to adopt the Sabbatical principle because the fields need rest, too. The Israelites were instructed, “…in the seventh year the land is to have a year of sabbath rest, a sabbath to the LORD. Do not sow your fields or prune your vineyards. ⁵ Do not reap what grows of itself or harvest the grapes of your untended vines. The land is to have a year of rest. ⁶ Whatever the land yields during the sabbath year will be food for you—for yourself, your male and female servants, and the hired worker and temporary resident who live among you, ⁷ as well as for your livestock and the wild animals in your land. Whatever the land produces may be eaten. (Leviticus 25:4-7) In the 21st century, we over work the fields and when the crops are not longer yielding the expected harvest, we begin to introduce chemicals to the crops and soil. The soil is no longer producing organic crops for our consumption, hence, the ascendency of many health complications in our generation. Today, organic crops have become more expensive because the chemically induced yields more common for our consumptions. We need to practice shifting-cultivation or the sabbatical rule to allow farming land to rest and be restored to produce organic crops for our consumption and good health. For instant as part of the reasons given by the United Nations Enviroment Programme why soil health is declining world wide, the UNEP stated “Soil pollution, often invisible, harms plant, animal and human health. Industrial processes, mining, poor waste management and unsustainable farming practices introduce chemicals, like synthetic fertilizers, pesticides, and heavy metals, into the soil.  Excessive fertilizer use disrupts nutrient balance, while pesticides harm beneficial soil organisms, like earthworms and fungi. Heavy metals, like lead and mercury, accumulate in the soil, interfering with microbial activity and plant nutrient uptake. Reducing pollution, minimizing chemical use and promoting organic farming can restore soil’s vitality.”  

In summary, we have discovered that it is necessary to press the reset button so that the body and the crop-yielding lands can rest and operate in optimum levels. Shalom.

PRAYER
May the Holy Spirt grant us the strength and wisdom to manage our resources well for the common good of humanity.