To the Danes, hygge is less about a particular aesthetic and more about feelings of belonging, conviviality, and contentment, so essential for the soul. In that sense, hygge could almost be considered a spiritual practice: a stance and attunement that helps you return to your true self and pay closer attention to the many blessings & Sacred stirrings that surround you. -A Sacred Journey

Do you take a full day of Sabbath rest or often find that once church is over, everyone goes back to a more normal weekend experience? If you are wanting to experience a deeper and fuller experience of Sabbath rest, that includes the entire day, the entire family and possibly begins the night before, hygge may make your experience even more rewarding.

Here are several ways hygge can make your days or moments of Sabbath rest even more peaceful and cozy...

(1) Settle in for an afternoon of comfort -  make a cup of tea or grab a glass of sweet tea. Fluff cozy, fat pillows and grab your fleece throw, and settle in with a book to read or your journal and favorite pen.

Pause to think and gaze out the window and enjoy the comfort of an afternoon with nothing to do but rest.

(2) Cook’s night off - have comfort food leftovers for dinner. Make the Sabbath night’s meal earlier in the week and make enough for a meal everyone will enjoy having again, that is easy to re-heat.

Or make it a pizza night, occasionally, and use paper plates, so there won’t even be dishes to clean.

(3) Each week, have an electronic-free family time-out. Have everyone put every device, including the phones, in a beautiful basket. Spend that time together.

Play board games. Read in the same room. Take a walk to enjoy the afternoon’s breeze.

Make cookies and hot cocoa. Tell stories, having each person make one up or read one to the others. Or choose other fun family activities.

(4) Watch a family movie together - get together, all in the same room, seated near each other, with cozy blankets and comfy pillows and with interaction during the commercial breaks (TV-made or mama-made) to discuss the movie and predict how the conflict or problem will be resolved. Prize for the winning guess?

Finding ways to honor the Sabbath as a family will be even easier when they are warm, cozy and fun. Use hygge to add a sense of specialness to your Sabbath rest.

Want to hygge your daily quiet time, too? Click here: Quiet Time Hygge.

Love to you and your family!

Jeanine

Journal Questions for Reflection

(1) How do you want your Sabbath rest to feel? Think of three words that describe what you want to experience during Sabbath days.

(2) How can you plan your time on the other days of the week so that time is free? What are the challenges you'll face in doing so?

(3) What do you think of trying the idea of a Sabbath that begins at sunset the night before? Would that make things easier or harder for the following day?

(4) In Rest: A Life of Sabbath Simplicity, the author addresses the possibility that your family might not be on board with shifting to a full Sabbath day, or one that includes more than going to church & she suggests not forcing a change, but instead, modeling Sabbath rest, yourself.

What do you think of quietly changing your own behavior? How might being less available to cook, clean or chaffeur affect the way your family functions on Sundays?

(5) Would hygge strategies make Sabbath rest more appealing to your family? Which one(s) do you want to try first?