Ep 46: Sabbath & a Life of Abundance with Jazmin N. Frank

Rachel: [00:00:00]

Rest doesn’t have to be a four-letter word. If you feel like you’re about to break from exhaustion. Let me invite you to Simply Sabbath, a podcast for the burnt-out Christian mom, who longs to get back to the core of who she is and to reclaim the deep joy and stabilizing peace Jesus has for her in her every day– without the mom guilt that often accompanies self-care practices.

Hi, my name is Rachel Fahrenbach and I help busy moms just like you add a simple restful family Sabbath to their week. So they can experience a refueling that gives them exactly what they need to live the life that God has called them to. I’m so glad you’ve joined me today. Let’s get to it.

When we talk about Sabbath, we often focus in on the concept of rest that it brings, but we tend to neglect talking [00:01:00] about its ties to abundance.

Today’s conversation with my guests, Jasmine Frank, is going to delve into this idea of Sabbath and a life of abundance. Jasmine, thank you so much for being here with me today. Yeah.

Jazmin: Thanks for having me.

Rachel: Rachel. Before we get into our conversation, I just wanna give our listeners a little background on you. You are a Bible teacher and a faith mentor, and you focus on building relationships with God through spiritual rhythms, and you equip and encourage ordinary people to live. To love God, love his story, and live devoted. You have written several Bible studies, right? Mm-hmm. , including finally free in the waiting and name above all names.

You love creating content that helps people dive deep into scripture and also teach Bible study skills. I love that. And I have been, um, I can’t wait to check out. I did not know about your Bible study before this, um, mm-hmm. , uh, before we got connected. And so I’m really excited to get a hold of it and [00:02:00] delve into it.

But, um, we’ll talk more about that later on and you can point us where exactly to get your, your resources.

So let’s start with your journey to implementing Sabbath as a practice in your life. How did you start doing it? Was it, um, something you grew up with doing or is it something you implemented later?

Jazmin: Yeah, so the idea of Sabbath.

It’s kind of a, it’s a newer ish thing. It definitely wasn’t something I grew up with. Um, although for all intents and purposes, I did grow up in a Christian home, but it, we didn’t have a regular Sabbath practice. Um, Sabbath wasn’t even a word I probably could have told you about. When I was younger, except for maybe that, I thought it was probably in the 10 Commandments, but when I was getting ready to go off to college, um, one of the things my dad was pretty adamant about before setting me off was, um, I remember him sitting down and telling me like, Jasmine, you’re about to go [00:03:00] into a realm of this world where it’s very easy to just keep working and working and doing. And he said, you need to make it a priority to take one day off from doing homework. Um, which I really needed to hear because I’m a very task driven person. And I will go at it so hard until either the task is done or until I burn out mm-hmm.

And so having him tell me, And gimme that challenge before I even set foot on campus as a freshman. Um, was just really. Foundational. And so, you know, Sabbath for me started as I’m just gonna take Sunday and not do homework, which was really hard sometimes because Sunday for college students was when most of the homework got done, so right.

Sometimes Sundays were really lonely and really hard. Um, but after college, I, so I went to college for, uh, education, for teaching, and I got a job out of [00:04:00] college. I taught for a couple years and in that profession again, and I was teaching English to middle school students. So I had over 120 students and every time I gave an essay, I had 125 essays to grade and so Sabbath in my teaching profession.

Became about survival. Like I needed a day off where I wasn’t thinking about work and I wasn’t scheduling things unless it was something fun. Um, and I was just taking a breather because the job was just so draining. And then the last couple years, um, I left the teaching profession. I’ve been doing a lot of this online Bible study stuff, and then couple.

You know, odd jobs, but Sabbath has become a really core value in my community. Mm-hmm. in my small group. It’s something we’ve been exploring together over the last couple years. Um, one of my closest friends, she is in seminary, and when she started seminary, um, she [00:05:00] really felt the Lord inviting her into what does it look like to rest.

And so being part of her community, I kind of went along on the journey with her . Yeah. And Sabbath now has become, um, it’s not just about not doing work, and it’s not just about getting a break so that I can survive the work week. It’s really about learning how to press into relationship with God in a way that is different from every other day of the week.

I, I firmly believe we can connect with the Lord and, and build relationship with him through every season, every bit of the day. But what Sabbath does for me is it really gives me a chance to cut loose from the responsibility and. Learn what it looks like to rest with God and to to play like, what does it look like to enjoy Sabbath, to enjoy the abundance that he’s given us in this life.

Um, so that’s in a nutshell my Sabbath [00:06:00] journey of, of learning to just take a break, stop, but now really putting a high value on it in my relationship with the Lord.

Rachel: That’s so good. It sounds like you shifted from just like a, a self care mm-hmm. to more of a, something like a deeper connection with the lord, a, a soul care, if you will.

From when you were in college and even when you were teaching, it sounds like you had. Practice of taking a break, but it was not the same kind of intentionality of connecting with God and delighting with him and playing with him and resting with him.

Mm-hmm. . So what led you to, um, I know you mentioned with your friend, uh, Going along with the journey with her, which is me. I think it’s always a little easier to implement something that is so culturally or so countercultural, right? When you have others to do it with. I, I think, like my husband and I do, do it together with our kids [00:07:00] and, um, but when you don’t have.

Maybe your spouse doesn’t want to, or maybe, um, like you, you are single. You, um, right, are doing this alone. But you to have community around you, doing it with you is always very helpful And, um, You know, God gave it to a community group. He right. Originally. Exactly. I mean, he gave it to all of us. It’s, it’s woven until a whole fabric of creation.

But you know, when he establishes it with Israel, with Israel, he’s giving it to a community to practice together. And so I, I think it’s important that we take moments of rest individually, but I still think there’s a community aspect of it that. We don’t always tap into fully in our church culture here in the us.

Right. Yeah. So when you started to study scriptures, and especially Exodus and you’re doing research for your Bible study mm-hmm. , this idea of abundance started to emerge. Can you speak to that a little [00:08:00] bit?

Jazmin: Yeah. So a little behind the scenes, I’ve, I’m just about ready to come out with my fifth. Fourth Bible study.

And one of the things, how long have you been doing this, uh, writing Bible study? That might me say, um, just a couple of years. I know it’s, it’s really actually insane how all of this has come about and it’s just a whole other story. But yeah, this is my fourth Bible study in two years. That is,

Rachel: Crazy. I’m a little envious.

I’m a little envious of you because I’m like you. I’m a like, go at it. Just get it done. Yeah. And work at it until it’s finished. And children have, like, having children has stripped that away from me. It’s like, your time is not your own. So I’ve like That’s so cool that you have been able to. Just knock things out and, and study and produce, and that’s fun.

But I also feel like you have to be even more intentional. Intentional about taking a Sabbath than you don’t have something demanding so much of your time. Yeah. Um, yep. But [00:09:00] back to. You’re behind the scenes information.

Jazmin: So a lot of these Bible studies are born out of either studies that we’ve walked through in my small group in my life group.

Mm-hmm. , um, or personal things that I’m really wrestling with with the Lord. And finally free. Um, this bible study on, on the Book of Exodus came out of a season of our life group and actually our church. Going through about a 12 week series of what does it look like to enter God’s rest and what does it look like to live into abundance rather than this idea of scarcity and, and scarcity being this idea that there’s not enough, there’s not enough time, there’s not enough resources, there’s not enough of me, I’m not enough.

Mm-hmm. , um, which just gets us into this. This cycle of striving and working so hard and burnout and poor ideas about what work is and what rest is. Mm-hmm. , it’s a mess. And so how do we switch from scarcity [00:10:00] into abundance? The belief that there is enough, God has given enough, He has given enough in just simply giving himself, but then also his provision, his protection.

Like what does it look like? Mm-hmm. , so not only trust. There is abundance here, but to live into that. And so as a life group, we actually went through the book of Exodus together and, and we were looking at God’s character. Mm-hmm. and Israel’s response, and then I. Some of the things that were rolling around in my brain from that study, and I pressed in a little deeper and, and really went at this book from the Sabbath standpoint.

Mm-hmm. , Um, when we talk about the book of Exodus, this book, um, for those that have read it before or familiar with it because of Sunday School lessons or the Prince of Egypt movie

Rachel: Yep. . Um, it’s a good movie. It’s a

Jazmin: great movie. I love it so much, but we. We tend to love [00:11:00] the first half of the book because it’s action packed.

It’s this great rescue story. Um, there’s the really cool 10 plagues thing, but then after Israel crosses the Red Sea, a lot of us like to drop off . Mm-hmm. because it just feels like law and it feels like rules. And so I wanted to tackle Exodus a little differently. Mm-hmm. , I wanted to. From doing the study with my Life group, I knew that Sabbath was woven throughout Exodus.

In fact, I might even argue that it’s one of the foundational themes of the Book of Exodus, and so I wanted to trace that through and what does it look like to rest? What does it look like to embrace abundance and why is Sabbath. So important because an exodus, that’s where we start to get that language.

Mm-hmm. , that’s where we get that, take a Sabbath, take a day off in the 10 Commandments. And then if you study, I mean [00:12:00] if, if you do a word study, if you go through and find every instance where the word Sabbath is used, it’s throughout the book. Mm-hmm. and I just, I don’t know. I, I, I always want people to love the Old Testament, and I have this, this drive that I know those books of the law and Leviticus and the last half of Exodus are real wonky , and they don’t read well with our modern Western culture brains.

but there is so much here. When we switch, switch our reading from, what can I get out of this to where do I see God’s heart here? And in the book of Exodus, God’s heart is for his people to rest. Because first half of Exodus Israel has been enslaved in Egypt for 400 years. . Yep. All this generation knows is slavery and work under Pharaoh’s hand and God so graciously comes.

Through Moses, through his voice at [00:13:00] Sinai, through the cloud and the, and the smoke and the fire that he uses to lead them through the wilderness. And he comes and he repeatedly reminds them, I am not like Pharaoh. Mm-hmm . And you are not wired to be slaves. You are children. My children, you are my people.

And I have created you to rest. To rest in community to. Just in your soul and to rest with me as your father, your God, your creator, your Lord. Um, so yeah, that, that study was really just bringing Exodus to life in a new way and, and acknowledging Sabbath is really important to God. He keeps bringing it up.

So what does it look like then to. Take that into our own lives in a way that isn’t legalistic, right? In a way that isn’t, you know, Sabbath. You can’t do work, you can’t be on your phone, you can’t do this, you can’t do that. You know, for in, in some realms, but [00:14:00] no Sabbath. Breathes life and it breathes freedom.

So what does it look like to embrace that freedom? If, if God, God set Israel free so that they could live free. And the same is true for us. We have been set free to live free. So that’s the long winded version, . I love it. What finally? Free explorers.

Rachel: Yes, it’s, that’s so good. Everything that you were just talking about.

Um. That concept is just woven throughout scripture and um, and specifically in Exodus. But I mean, you see it throughout all of the Old Testament and in the New Testament, and I think we kind of dismiss it a little bit because it’s not as, um, repeated in the New Testament. But I think what happens in the New Testament is there are, uh, glimpses of what it’s beginning [00:15:00] to be redeemed and, uh, looking forward to a new heaven and a new Earth when essentially Sabbath will return. You know, we have the garden, which is this very intimate walk with the Lord and there’s work and then there’s rest with him. Mm-hmm. and sin fractures that Right. And I think that when, um, God gave this to Israel, he entrusted it to them and to point others back to him, point others back to the original design that we were always meant to work and rest.

And that reflecting God’s glory and reflecting his image is actually in both of those, and it is our essentially. It’s so integral to our design and our purpose and our sense of belonging. Mm-hmm. . And that one day, you know, Christ’s work on the cross has begun the redemptive process of bringing that garden Kingdom back into [00:16:00] wholeness and one day we will get to work and rest in the presence of God when the new heaven, new Earth are established. And so I think you’re right in that it is woven throughout all of scripture and it is, it is a representation of God’s heart to us and his heart that has always been for us of being, working with him and resting with him and enjoying the life that he’s called to, which is a life of abundance. Right. And so let’s talk about that a little bit more, that idea of abundant life and how that works in with this idea of Sabbath. we often talk about, The don’t and yeah, the do nuts and I think that’s where most people’s brains go when we are talking about Sabbath. Um, but you’re saying that Sabbath is not meant to be like that. It’s supposed to be abundant.

It’s supposed to be showing us this life that God has called us to. Yeah. Um, when you are practicing Sabbath, [00:17:00] what are some of the ways in which you see that abundant life come? .

Jazmin: Yeah. So this is something I’ve been kind of re-exploring. Mm-hmm. , um, a little while back. You know, I, I’ve been trying to practice Sabbath every week for the last couple years and a little while back I started getting bored and angry that I had to take a day off cuz I was like, I’ve got these projects I really wanna work on.

Mm-hmm. and I, at that time I was. Without hobbies. So I’m like, I don’t even know what to do for fun. And I just, I just got bored and angry and I was like, I don’t wanna do this anymore. And the lord, you know, I was in conversation with him. I was like, I don’t, I don’t even know what to do for Sabbath. And he’s like, What if he always likes posing?

What if questions to me, like, let’s explore this a little

Rachel: bit. Dive into this. Let’s, let’s, let’s

Jazmin: consider, like, what if Sabbath is about play? And I was like, Hmm, [00:18:00] okay, let’s explore this. And so I’ve, I’ve really been developing some new hobbies and trying to figure out what is fun for me, what gives me life, what, what helps me rest.

But not just in a way of like, I’m gonna lie here and do nothing and, you know, make sure my body’s ready for the week. Sometimes we need to just sleep and stop. Mm-hmm. . Exactly. But sometimes rest just. Like moving differently throughout your day. Mm-hmm. . And so for me, some of the things I’ve learned that really helped me tap into that abundance and help me remember like there’s, there’s just so much good in this world and there’s so much good that God has given.

Um, I love getting outside, especially right now. Mm-hmm. , it just. You know, fall is here and the weather is just wonderful. I love getting outside, taking my dog to the park and going for a walk or you know, just lingering in the backyard, anything like that. I love getting [00:19:00] outside. I also have learned that creativity is really important for me. Mm-hmm. . And so trying to make space on Sabbath to pursue some creative things. Um, sometimes that’s cooking. And I will do the whole process of make my grocery list, go to the grocery store because I love grocery shopping. It’s kind of a weird thing. Most people don’t like it, but I love going to the grocery store.

Maybe it’s because I’m not toting kids around. Maybe that’s part of it. Maybe I

Rachel: will too. I have a friend who her husband loves grocery shopping and she’s like, Okay, fine, you go do it. . I just, I love

Jazmin: food. Mm-hmm. and it’s a creative space for me. Mm-hmm. . And so sometimes going to the grocery store, when I’m in that cooking mindset, it’s like going to the craft store.

Yeah. Like I’ve got all these raw elements and I get to figure out how to put ’em together. Um, and I get to pick the best ones for this dish. So sometimes I’m cooking a meal, um, sometimes I am doing some sort of craft or, um, I [00:20:00] crochet. I’m trying to get back into that rhythm of, of working with yarn again. So things like that.

And then also, um, I’m careful with what I schedule or how much I schedule on my Sabbath because with, with my work schedule, I don’t have a lot of evenings off. So sometimes my Sabbath is a place where I do get to connect with people and I get to hang out, but I’m always very mindful about who it is I’m scheduling to hang out with.

And um, and. , just making sure it’s during good time of the day where I don’t feel rushed. I don’t feel all this pressure to show up and, and, and be on all the time. Mm-hmm. , but I’m, I’m spending time connecting with people that help me rest and, and help me play and help me enjoy just human relationship and, and connecting with the Lord.

So those are some of the things that I have found that are really important for me in Sabbath and that help remember abundance and this, I always go back to, um, [00:21:00] John 10 10 where Jesus tells his disciples, I’ve come to give life and to give it abundantly. Mm-hmm. . And so pressing into that abundant life in how I’m wired and in the things I like and the hobbies I choose, um, and the people I like spending time.

Rachel: Yeah, I think, I think our culture gets, you know, like we often hear like songs or, or TV shows or whatnot, like, they’re like, don’t miss out on life. Like don’t, don’t spend all your days working so hard that you miss out on things. And often they like will discount work. And yeah, they’ll kind of dismiss it a little bit.

Like that’s not the important thing in, in life is not work. It’s, it’s the people, it’s the plane. But I think what God calls us to in the scripture is it’s both and, right. It, it’s both work and play. And it’s, and it’s not just, it’s not just spend all your days enjoying this world, but it’s not spend all your days working.

It’s both of them [00:22:00] work. So you understand. So that you appreciate and value the thing that you’ve cultivated and you’ve rest in that, but then rest so that you can cultivate and create more. And it’s this continuum. And, um, I think that what you said here is so smart in that. The idea of playing, like what if, what if Sabbath is like play?

Right? Like, I think so often we can, we can just get caught up in the what if Sabbath. Exactly. And it’s like, well, you know mm-hmm. , it can be a little bit more simpler than that. At the end of the, at the end of the day, God created for six days and then he got to just hang out with the people and the creation that he, he created.

Right? And what if it’s as simple as that? We create for six. And then we just enjoy it. , like if we would just strip it all down to just those and make it simple, not complicated. And I think that’s what’s woven, woven throughout scripture and this call into, I have so much for you in [00:23:00] both work and in rest.

Jazmin: Yeah. And something that’s interesting, I was having a conversation with a, a family friend a little while ago when this study was getting ready to come out and I was talking through, you know, this idea of rest throughout scripture and Sabbath and she, she commented, she’s like, You know, it’s interesting, Adam and Eve, humanity is created on day six and day seven is when God rests.

And so really, Humanity’s first day on earth is rest, and then the work comes. Mm-hmm. . And so I also think that maybe sometimes we have it switched in the, we work to rest and I don’t think that’s accurate either. I think, I think we rest and then we work fr out of that place of rest. We allow the rest to overflow into our week.

So it’s not. Like working and resting, but they, they go together, like you said, they mesh. Yeah. And that we can, we can enjoy rest. We can enjoy [00:24:00] work. We can work out of a place of rest. We can rest well after working well. Like it, it all, all of it goes together.

Rachel: It really does. And I think that’s what abundant life is.

It’s, it’s, mm-hmm. , there’s just so much for it because God created us with certain gifting and talents. And he’s purposed us of certain tasks to do to further his kingdom, and he’s calling us into that. But part of that is enjoying the things that he, you know, we work alongside him and then we get to rest alongside him.

Yeah. And I think that’s, that abundant life concept is like, it’s, it’s more than just taking a break. It’s really fully living out the life that he’s called you.

Jazmin: Because once again, he’s not Pharaoh Exactly. Not demanding endless labor and work from us. He’s saying, Guys, I made this beautiful world and I put you in it because I wanted you Yeah.

To help me take care of it, but I wanted you to enjoy it, so go enjoying it. Stop worrying about all of this. Yeah. And just enjoy [00:25:00] what I’ve created for you. Mm-hmm.

Rachel: so. What, um, does your Sabbath look like and what’s kinda your favorite part of it?

Jazmin: Yeah, so my Sabbath right now is on Fridays. Um, again, because of my work schedule and most of the time it means, um, I actually try to start my Sabbath.

So Jewish Sabbath started from sundown. and then to sundown. Mm-hmm. . So it actually starts the evening before mm-hmm. . And so, um, I get off work Thursday night around nine and so Thursday I’m actually preparing for Sabbath. I’m, That’s the day I’m getting all of my office stuff finished out. Any last task for the week, I’m cleaning up my spaces, I’m doing my laundry, I’m doing my grocery shopping unless I plan to make something special and wanna do the shopping on Friday.

Um, but I make sure that my space is ready before I go to work, so that when I come home, I [00:26:00] can begin entering into that Sabbath space, that, that mindset. Um, usually Thursday evening is a little bit of family time. I live with my parents right now, and so we’ll watch a show together. Um, we might order in pizza, something like that.

And then before I go to bed, I take some time to journal and I just kind. You know, lay everything before the Lord. Be really intentional about, I am, I’m laying this down and I’m resting and these are some things that are on my heart right now that I just wanna share with you, or, um, anything like that.

And then Friday looks like sleeping in as long as possible. Unfortunately that doesn’t go very far. Um, and I’m still up by seven 30. Most, I

Rachel: think our bodies betray us right on the days where we’re like, we can sleep in. It’s like,

Jazmin: It doesn’t matter. I make up for it though. I usually try to stay in bed. One of the perks of being single mm-hmm.

is I don’t have little ones that I have to get up and tend to. So I linger in bed, usually with a book. Um, and most of the time on Sabbath, I [00:27:00] skip my Bible reading. I try to find other ways to connect with the Lord other than my normal, um, devotional routine. Mm-hmm. usually I’m going to the park or taking the dog for a walk and doing a prayer walk, stuff like that.

Rachel: And I mean that. Sense because your work is writing Bible studies. , right? Mm-hmm. . And I think I, I think that’s important to note because sometimes when people ask me like, Well, what counts as work on Sabbath? It’s like, well, you kind of have to figure that out for yourself because what counts for work for you is probably not gonna count for work for me.

I mean, I work in the online space, like it’s a totally weird world, and you do too. You’re a writer. Like for other friends of mine, they’re like, Oh, I write on Sabbath. And I’m like, I actually don’t like, because even though writing is life giving to me, It’s my work right now. And so for me, I actually need to step back from it.

And, um, And so for you, it’s, it’s the same thing. It’s with Bible studies, that’s what you’re always in and you need a break from that [00:28:00] and take a step back and say, Let’s, let’s see how else I can connect with God. Yeah.

Jazmin: And actually I’m glad you, you kind of drew attention to that because there are still weeks even recently where it’s just like, I feel like I should be reading the Bible.

Mm-hmm. and. Being reminded like, Jazmin, that’s what you’re doing all week. That is what you’re, that is your mode of work. Um, it just kind of, again, continues to take off the pressure of what does Sabbath have to look

Rachel: like. Yeah. And, and the point too, like that, um, you’re not saying that you don’t connect with God.

Like, and I think that’s the difference between self care moments where we like go get a pedicure or go, you know, And I’m not knocking that I love pedicures. Where the difference between self care mm-hmm. and a Sabbath rest where you still have moments of connection with God. But what you’re saying is, how can I connect with him differently?

Right. How can I engage in play in with God differently than I do in my work with [00:29:00] him? Right. And so I think I wanna, I think it’s important to note that too, that, Yeah, just because we’re taking a break from these more. Spiritually type things, right? Like, if not that we’re not engaging with the Lord on

Jazmin: that day, right?

Yeah. We’re not, We’re not quitting. We’re just doing it differently. We’re just finding a different way to do it.

Rachel: And I think sometimes in our culture, we kind of get hung up that the way that we grow our faith is we read our Bibles and we pray every day. You know? Yep, yep, yep.

Jazmin: That is, you know, I, I taught in my bio, you read, um, I’m a faith mentor.

That’s what I’ve mm-hmm. started calling myself and, and I do teach Bible study. I do write Bible studying. I, I do teach people how to engage with God’s word, but that is one thing under this big umbrella of relationship and, and what it looks like. And so, yeah, Sabbath is a great time to ex. Explore, I think mm-hmm.

um, to explore, you know, what is a different way I can connect with the Lord, right? Um, than what [00:30:00] I’m doing every other day of the week. And you know, if you have a routine that’s working for you and, and that’s where you find life, then by all means, stick with it on your Sabbath too. But if, if you’re finding that getting up and reading your Bible on Sabbath is just hard or it’s not fun, or it’s just draining.

Maybe take a break and try something different. We’ve got so much room to play around and, and try things. Mm-hmm. ,

Rachel: so does any, you were talking about, um, you find other things to read. How else, how do you end your Sabbath time? Does it go all the way? Do you like go all the way through Friday then, or do you end it at a certain time

Jazmin: on.

It’s kind of loose. I definitely, so those things I try to, um, be a little more stringent on, like, I’ve been trying to shut off my phone for about 24 hours because, I’m on it a lot, and that doesn’t always happen because sometimes scrolling through Instagram reels is really fun in life giving . [00:31:00] But I have noticed I’ve just been getting a little more drained on my devices lately, and so I try to shut it off.

So I try to keep the phone away on, on weeks when I’m turning off my phone. I try to keep it away until dark. Okay. At least, if not through the rest of the, the evening. Um, but yeah. I think my ending is, is kind of loose. I, yeah. Generally start feeling myself, get into a little bit more of a planning mode.

So starting to get ready for, um, I work on Saturday, so getting ready for the next work day. Mm-hmm. . Um, but. It’s really just kind of enjoying mm-hmm. . Um, evenings are generally family time or I might have dinner with a friend. Um, so I guess I end relationally, I end with community. Um, and I make sure. Before I go to bed, that pieces are in place so that I’m prepared to get up the next day and move back into work out of rest rather than waking up the next day and be like, Oh my goodness.

Mm-hmm. , [00:32:00] I’ve got so much to do. I dunno what I’m doing. What am I doing first? So I, I try to end by setting myself up well, for the next day, for the new week.

Rachel: I like that. We’re, we’ve been discussing like, how can we end. S a little bit more intentionally. So that’s kind of what Yeah. Why I ask. Cause I’m just curious what other people do.

Um, but we do something similar in that we prepare for the next day. Mm-hmm. . And it does help, It helps you not feel frantic the next morning when you’re going right back, cuz our um, Our Sabbath with is Saturday evening to Sunday evening. So we definitely take Sunday evening to prepare for Monday morning.

Yeah, and it does, it helps and tremendously not to feel that franticness the next morning. Right. So how has practicing Sabbath impacted you? Oh goodness. Deep question. I know.

Jazmin: Such a, I mean, how has it not impacted me? So like I said, I’m task driven.

There is a right way to do things in my brain and I always wanna [00:33:00] find it. And so, That has been kind of a challenge in my faith actually for all of my life, is there has got to be a right way to do this faith thing and I wanna find the right way because I don’t wanna disappoint God and I wanna make sure like I’m living within his will and, and practicing Sabbath for me has really helped me better understand God’s heart for me and help me understand just how much freedom there is within.

Um. Within my faith life and within my daily life, I reached a really hard point, um, halfway through my college experience where. I was anxious all the time and I had God and I communicate like visually. He gives me a lot of pictures to help me understand what’s going on inside of me and around me. And he planted this picture in my head of me up on this like circus tightrope and there’s no net below.

And this thing is, So up high, and he’s like, Jasmine, you have put [00:34:00] yourself up on this tight rope and you have come to believe that my will is a tight rope. Mm-hmm. , that is not accurate. My will for your life. And, and my grace and the freedom you have is like a wooded path. It’s wide enough for the both of us to walk.

There’s room and different directions to go. There’s space to run and, and just live freely. And so I think practicing Sabbath has. Given me a better understanding of who God is. Mm-hmm. , um, of his love and of his grace. That he is not this miser looking to catch me, tripping up. Um, but that he is just this loving father, just wants to spend time with me and really wants me to live into the person he’s created me to be.

And it’s also given me, I think, a deeper love for myself outside of what I can accomplish and what I can contribute to this world. Sabbath is a day where I just get to be [00:35:00] Jazmin and nothing is expected of me. Loosely speaking. Mm-hmm. , nothing’s expected of me. I don’t have deadlines I have to complete.

You know, sometimes life happens and things come up and I have to deal with them, but for the most part, I’m walking into Sabbath recognizing, okay, the work is done, I get to rest, I get to do what I wanna do, what I enjoy doing, and I just get to have fun for a little bit, which is very hard for me to stop and do.

But it’s this built in day now. You know what? I get to just enjoy, just be, um, just be, and I, I think, I think that’s been the biggest impact is, is a better understanding of God and a better love for myself and more, more, um, ability to give myself that freedom to receive the freedom that God has already given me and actually live it out.

Rachel: Hmm. So beautiful. So that’s just that [00:36:00] imagery you gave me gave when walking on the type rope and yeah. It’s so good. Do you have any tips or suggestions for those of us who are trying to

Jazmin: practices? Yeah. Um, so for those already kind of in, in the throws of learning how to practice this, I think, um, You know, we talk about Sabbath as a practice.

Mm-hmm. , and it’s not, not so much a practice as of like a, we do this to get better at something. Right. But a practice as a, this is fluid. Mm-hmm. and it’s meant to be fluid. It’s not meant to be super structured like the rest of our week. Um, so one of my biggest tips is just let your. Change things up and try different things.

And Sabbath takes a while to figure out and find a rhythm that works. Mm-hmm. . And then once you do the seasons [00:37:00] change and suddenly that thing that worked is not working anymore. So I think just let it be fluid and let it be, um, A place of conversation, uh, with the Lord. And if you’re practicing Sabbath with your family or roommate or your community, letting that be something, um, you keep coming back to in conversation, you know, practicing together.

What did you enjoy? What helps you rest? What helps us rest as a family, as a community, and, um, Just letting it continue to grow and, and, and change and adapt for, uh, the seasons and for the people that are practicing with you and amongst you and, um, yeah, fluid.

Rachel: Fluidity. That is a word right there. That is a, I love it.

It is. I love it too. Well, Jasmine, it has been so fun talking to you about this topic. Before we wrap up, I wanna make sure to point our listeners to your Bible study and any [00:38:00] other resources you have for us. So how can they get those resources and how can they connect with.

Jazmin: Yeah. Um, best place is my website, jazminnfrank.com.

Um, I’m sure the link will be in with the show. Yeah. In show notes. Yep. But, um, cuz my name is spelled differently than you might expect mm-hmm. . But on my website you’ll find I’ve got a whole lot of free resources. And then, um, jazminnfrank.com/books is where you can find all of my Bible studies.

I’ve got a couple journals and um, you can snag some previews if you wanna look inside first before you go and find them. And then if you do wanna buy finally Free or any of the others, they’re all available on Amazon. Um, and then you can also check with your local bookstores and um, I think one of them is on Barnes and noble.com as well.

So, And they can, they can get those ordered for you.

Rachel: Fabulous. We’ll definitely go check those out. And I, I will be getting your, your, um, [00:39:00] bible study finally. Great. Cause it sounds fabulous and I always love studying about Sabbath so Yeah. If, would you mind, um, closing us in prayer?

Jazmin: Absolutely.

Abba father. We thank you Lord. We thank you that you are a God of rest. That you are not like Pharaoh. You do not demand endless labor. Um, you just ask for a relationship and you teach us what that looks like. Um, we thank you Lord for your word and that you have given us this great gift of knowing your story, your history, and your relationship with people in the past, and that that gets to feed our relationship with you today.

Lord, I pray for all of us here, um, that are seeking to practice Sabbath and, and to know you better through it and to find rest in the midst of these crazy busy lives of ours. [00:40:00] Um, I just asked Lord for freedom. I asked that you would continue to show us what freedom looks like, what abundance looks like, and I pray that our Sabbath practice would continue to grow and change and feed our souls Lord, that we would, um, That this would be the day in our week that we most look forward to, to connect with you, to connect with people in our lives that matter to us, to play and enjoy this world you’ve created that, that we get to live in.

Father, we just thank you for this conversation and whatever little seeds you’ve planted, whatever little nuggets people are walking away with, I pray that it draws them closer to you and Lord, that we become more and more aware of just how. Close you are, Lord. You have status free delivery, and I pray that you continue to show us what that looks like as we press into your grace, as we practice Sabbath and as we trust that you are a [00:41:00] God who walks with us along this life path, that it is wide enough for the both of us and there’s so much room to play and live freely.

Lord, we praise you when we Thank you. Amen.

Rachel: Amen. Thank you so much, Jasmine, for, um, our conversation today and reminding us that God has called us to a life of abundance and that Sabbath is one way that points us to that. And thank you for listening in into today’s episode. We’ll meet back here next week as we continue the conversation about all thanks Sabath, and the deep joy and stabilizing peace it brings to our lives.

Bye.

 Hey, I just want to say thank you for joining me for today’s conversation. I know many things demand your attention. I don’t take lightly the privilege it is to share your time. I want to make things as easy and simple for you. So I’ve linked to all the resources mentioned in the episode in the show notes, and you can always find the link and more helpful information on my website, [00:42:00] www.rachelfahrenbach.com.

As we say our goodbyes, let me remind you that what we’re talking about in this podcast is not just another thing to add to your to-do list. This is not another expectation for you to live up to. It is a gift out stretched from the hand of your creator. An invitation to press pause on walking alongside Jesus in all the things He’s called you to do. And instead the down, across from Him and just be with Him.

It is an invitation to Simply Sabbath.