I’m not sure where Christians ever got the idea of work-life balance, but it certainly didn’t come from the Bible. The Sabbath was created for man, but it doesn’t create balance but a rhythm. The alternative to the ideal of work-life balance is work-life obedience. The rhythm of the Sabbath make work-life obedience sustainable without suffering burnout.

We are made for rhythm, not balance

The Bible is the owner’s manual on how man was made and how he works. The instructions for man, straight from the Creator, say, “Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a sabbath of the Lord your God; in it you shall not do any work.” Exodus 20:9-10. I don’t think by anyone’s math a 6-1 ratio of work to rest can be called balance.

We are not made for balance when it comes to work and life. We are made for a rhythm. That rhythm consists of six days of work followed by one day of rest. That seventh day is meant to be treated as sacred, not for God’s sake but for ours.

Picture a swing, not a tightrope

If work-life balance is a person walking a tightrope, Sabbath rhythm is a person in a swing. The swing reaches the apogee of the arc at the same time in each cycle, followed by a pause, a rest. Then there is a descent and rush of energy until the swing reaches the apogee, followed again by a restful pause.

The Lord explains the reason for this rhythm: “For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day.” Exodus 20:11. This rhythm is rooted in the fact God rested on the seventh day, and we are created in His image.

Jesus made it clear that this rhythm is for our benefit. The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. Mark 2:27. We need the Sabbath because we need to recharge once per week. This recharging cycle is seen in our God-given sleep patterns as well. We need to sleep 6-8 hours each day at roughly the same time each day. We spend 1/3rd of each day recharging physically through sleep, and then every 7th day we we recharge spiritually, emotionally, and psychologically through rest.

The Sabbath rhythm prevents burnout

As a busy young trial lawyer, I often needed to work until midnight on Saturdays to have a full day off Sunday. But ensuring I left no work to do on Sunday was key. If I got tired on Saturday and left even a little work for Sunday, I was never able to fully relax because in the back of my mind all day Sunday I knew I had to work eventually.

As I learned to fully protect and honor the Sabbath, it became the day I most looked forward to every week. More importantly, in all those years of working–sometimes 70-75 hours per week– I never burned out. That is the magic of the Sabbath.

The other thing that happened was that once I began to enjoy the blessing of a true Sabbath and how refreshed I felt on Monday morning, I did everything I could do to finish my work on Saturday

The Sabbath ensures we keep first things first

In addition, the Sabbath helps ensure we keep first things first. By refusing to work on the Sabbath, we ensure we have the best chance of devoting that time to the Lord, our families and friends.

Honoring the Sabbath creates that open date on the calendar once each week and takes work off it. That makes it easier to find extended time to spend in the Bible or in prayer or with family and friends.

Sundays continue to be my favorite day of the week. I work hard for six days so I can look forward to the Sabbath seventh each week. I look forward to the day Jesus said said was made for me.

Sabbath rhythm is attainable

Perhaps most importantly, unlike the mythical ideal of work-life balance, a consistent Sabbath rhythm is attainable. I know this because I have one of the busiest, high stress jobs there is as a trial lawyer, and I rarely work on a Sunday.

Being able to set aside one day in seven is easier than trying to maintain a constant balance. The good news is that is all we need anyway because that is how the Creator created us.

Give up your quest for work-life balance. It is an unobtainable, mythical ideal.

Instead seek work-life obedience — God-centered, engaged stewardship, with the goal of completing the work at your job and in your life God has given you to do.

Do that in the context of the rhythm of a consistent Sabbath day you honor and treat as sacred, and you will find a sweet spot in life so many seek but far too few find. GS