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For more information about YEHOVAH's Sabbath day and how to determine when it falls,
write for the following articles: Have We Been Observing the Sabbath at the Wrong Time All
These Years?, From Sabbath to Saturday: The Story of the Jewish Rest Day, The New Moon
and the Weekly Sabbath -- Side-By-Side, and YEHOVAH's Sacred Calendar for 2001.

YEHOVAH's Sabbath is the seventh day on His true calendar and, since YEHOVAH's
days begin at sunset, you should keep YEHOVAH's Sabbath beginning at sunset the previous eve-
ning and ending Sabbath evening at sunset.

The approximate time of the sunset may be found in most newspapers in the weather fore-
cast section. If this information is not available, the sunset may be determined by observing the
light as it diminishes before the twilight approaches. Or, if you can see the sun, you would begin to
observe the Sabbath when the sun is ready to fade away over the horizon.

Prepare for the Sabbath

In order that we may have our minds free from last-minute duties on the Sabbath, YEHO-
VAH has commanded that we prepare for it the day before -- known as the "Preparation Day."
Exodus 16:23-25 shows that we should do our heavy cooking, roasting, boiling, etc., on the prepa-
ration day prior to the Sabbath. YEHOVAH does not want us to clutter up His Sabbath with long
hours of cooking.

Does that mean we cannot eat a fine, sumptuous meal on the Sabbath? Not at all! The Sab-
bath is a feast day. But it does mean that we should plan ahead.

Let's say we want to prepare a nice roast for the Sabbath. But this may require cooking it
for two or three hours. What should we do? Here is one way to handle the situation. Cook it on the
preparation day (the day before the Sabbath) until it is almost but not completely done. Then, on
the Sabbath, you can simply "warm it up." In this way the time involved will be kept down to a
minimum on the Sabbath, and the roast will not be dry.

The same holds true for any kind of baking. Baked goods can be prepared ahead of time,
kept in the refrigerator, and brought out to be eaten on the Sabbath. Elaborate salads and dressings
should be prepared separately ahead of time, and saved until the Sabbath.

There are some things which cannot or need not be done before the Sabbath. Obviously we
would not normally fry or scramble an egg on the preparation day, store it in the deep freeze and
then thaw it out and eat it Sabbath morning.

One word of caution though, concerning the preparation day. It is only one day. Don't make
the mistake of leaving daily duties -- such as housecleaning, baking, cooking, grocery shopping,
house repairs, car washing, etc. -- until the preparation day before the Sabbath! Do this and you
will find the Sabbath may be a day of total collapse rather than a peaceful day of rest and relaxa-
tion with enough energy to communicate with YEHOVAH! The day before the Sabbath is a day that
prepares us for the Sabbath, not a day to catch up on what we should have been doing all week.

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