Happy Sabbath

I have been noticing that a very common greeting among my Adventist friends is "Happy Sabbath." Walk into one of their congregations on a Sabbath morning and this will be part of the friendly greetings to you, both before and after the worship service. Facebook greetings include this as people prepare for their day of rest and worship, sometimes with the variation, "Blessed Sabbath."

So when was the last time you heard anything similar from Christians worshiping on Sunday? "Blessed Lord's Day" just doesn't seem to be a very common phrase, at least among those I know, across a lot of denominations. Right now, we may well be greeting each other with "Merry Christmas," and there will be similar holiday oriented greetings at Easter, as well as the generally accepted holiday comments like  "Happy New Year's Day, Happy Thanksgiving, etc.

I wonder why.

I'm sure that some of this is likely to be a cultural phenomenon, perhaps in part because so few people gather for worship on the seventh day of the week. Just as with any kind of greeting, I'm sure this can, and has, become more of a formality than a statement with any meeting to some who use it. Still, my experience has been that the iteration of the phrase is generally accompanied by a joyous anticipation and celebration of this set apart day.

So why haven't the rest of us Christians adopted some kind of similar phrase? We sing of the wonders and joy of the gospel message, we listen to words of hope and mercy and grace, but sometimes it seems like our day of worship is anything but a "happy" day.

To be sure, we do know that each and every day is an occasion for rejoicing and gladness. After all, a popular praise song from the late 20th century focused on Psalm 118:24:

"This is the day, this is the day, this is the day that the Lord has made. We will rejoice, we will rejoice, we will rejoice and be glad in it..."

Then we have those familiar words from Paul in Philippians 4:4-7:

"Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."

But even if we know that we are called to rejoice in the opportunity to once again celebrate a day of worship and praise, why is it that we wait until a holiday to share this greeting with others? Whether you are reading this on a Saturday, a Sunday, or "just" a weekday, may this indeed be a day to greet fellow believers with a message of rejoicing and happiness in the Lord.

"Have a blessed and joyous day with the Lord!"