Culture relentlessly vies for our attention. Maybe you’ve noticed, or maybe you pride yourself in your ability to balance a teetering plate piled high with emails, weekend work, coffee dates, house chores and family brunch. We often forget God commanded rest. John Mark Comer says, “[It’s] the only one of the 10 commandments that Christians in America brag about breaking.”

Our physical, spiritual and mental well-being depends on our commitment to rest. No, not just an occasional nap, late-night Netflix hour or thirty-minute couch hangout with Instagram. Resting well requires obedience, discipline, surrender and delight.

Whether you’re a business owner, full-time mother, newlywed or college student, rest is a healthy boundary you must set for yourself.

At first glance, Sabbath looks suspiciously like a religious duty full of “do not’s”. At least that’s what the Pharisees made it out to be in the Gospels. Or maybe you’ve always thought of it as just a scheduled day off? But when we examine God’s design of rest, we can see Sabbath is made up of sustainable and enriching qualities. It may seem overwhelming at first to sacrifice precious productivity for rest, but if implemented in little steps, Sabbath will become a rhythmic blessing.

So here are 5 ideas to consider to help you rest better and implement Sabbath rhythms into your life.

1. Schedule Your Sabbath

Traditionally, Sabbath begins twenty minutes before sunset on Friday and ends late afternoon on Saturday. While I highly recommend a twenty-four hour Sabbath, no one is requiring you to jump all in immediately. Some people practice Sabbath in the middle of the week. Maybe five hours on Friday afternoons is a good place to start. Sit down and look at your week to week schedule, then decide what day and time work best. Write it in your calendar every week, as consistency will create a cadence to look forward to. And consider inviting others to join you if you need accountability.

2. Prepare

The sacred space of Sabbath is designed to be separated from labor, which requires some basic groundwork on your part. Since we each delight in different things, decide what feels like work to you. If chopping vegetables in the kitchen feels like a task more than a joy, prepare your meal ahead of time or plan to get take-out. Complete your to-do list a couple of hours before your Sabbath begins. Finish all assignments, meetings, work projects, online shopping, workouts (unless a long run makes you happy), errands and house chores. Arrange your work around your time of rest, not the other way around. Let this time of preparation fill you with joyful anticipation.

3. Turn Off Your Phone

Whether for a half hour or the full day, put down your phone. Texts, tweets, and emails can wait. Smartphones, while a useful tool, threaten our ability to rest well. If circumstances require you to keep your phone on, log off social media. Sabbath is an opportunity to disconnect from technology and eliminate distractions. Take in the present and fast from frequent screen use.

4. Retreat

Jesus regularly separated himself from his disciples and the crowds to be alone. Modeling his behavior teaches us to slow down to his pace. We were never meant to race ahead of Jesus. Spend part of your Sabbath in isolated intimacy with your Creator. Whether prayer and conversation, scripture reading, walking in nature or orchestrating music, invite God into your rest. He longs for your company.

5. Make a “Joy List”

Your joy list is a to-do list of utmost delight. Think of all the things that fill you up to bursting, that make you exhale as you crawl into bed and think, “Today was a good day”. Your joy list consists only of happiness-inducing activities, with no pressure to check off each box. I usually write mine during my preparation time on Friday afternoon. Whether baking sourdough, taking a nap on your porch, hiking, reading a stack of books, wearing your favorite pair of jeans or eating waffles, make sure your Sabbath is packed with pleasure. Think of it as an opportunity to savor every second of the day. God delights in your delight!

Remember, your Sabbath won’t look like anyone else’s. Just as God created each of us uniquely in his eyes, we’re all drawn to cultivating spaces of rest differently. God created the seventh day for our own good, for spiritual healing. It is “an opportunity to mend our tattered lives” (The Sabbath by Abraham Joshua Heschel). Back in the garden, your Creator rested and delighted in his masterpiece – which includes you – and he’s inviting you to participate.