He lives by a rule that guides and shapes his decisions, actions, and response to circumstances. Daniel makes it his regular practice to return to his apartment and kneel in prayer three times a day (Daniel 6:10) — even when he knows this might cost him his life.

How does Daniel become a person whose relationship with God not only survives but even thrives in such hostile circumstances? It’s because he has a plan to sustain and grow his life with God.

Sabbath enabled me to study more effectively the other six days and made school feel less like a grind and more like a gift.

Every evening I try to set aside five or ten minutes to pray what Saint Ignatius called the prayer of Examen. After putting our toddler down, I lie on the futon next to his bed, quiet my thoughts, and hit the “play” button on the video of my day. I think about the people with whom I’ve spent time, the conversations I’ve had, the places I’ve been,

Daniel centers his life on God and receives the animating presence of the Spirit, who energizes him to live faithfully for God in the world.

what is most important is having a relationship with him, as opposed to getting through a spiritual task. It was hard for me at first to realize that quiet time in conversation with God was more fruitful than hurriedly attempting to get through a certain amount of Scripture…. God has taught me that it is all about the relationship, not about what I

In Jesus’ day, the teachers of the law multiplied the rules and regulations around the Sabbath so that it was no longer a joy, but a burden; no longer a delight, but a duty. Jesus responded to this dreary view by saying, “The Sabbath was made for people, not people for the Sabbath.”

You get to willfully ignore the many niggling things your existence genuinely depends on — and is often hobbled beneath — so that you can turn to whatever you’ve put off and pushed away for lack of time, lack of room, lack of breath. You get to shuck the “have-tos” and lay hold of the “get-tos.”11

Sabbath requires surrender. If we only stop when we are finished [our emails, our projects], we will never stop — because our work is never completely done.”