Sabbath

Then God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done. Genesis 2:3

I am currently reading this book:

SABBATH: Finding Rest, Renewal, And Delight In Our Busy Lives by Wayne Muller

It was recommended by an online book club that I participate in. All I can say is, "WOW!" It is (of course) about the Sabbath and what God intended for it to be...a time of rest, renewal and delight. Any time I read a good book I will recommend friends and family to read it. Now this book, I hope the WHOLE world reads it. It could very well change the world we live in if we all practiced the celebration of Sabbath.

Today it was cold. It was dreary outside. I did not want to leave my nice, warm home.

We always go to church on Sundays. I think it is important to do so...to be with other believers, to fellowship, to hear a sermon/lesson on God's promises.

Today, I suggested to Chris that we just stay home.

And today we celebrated Sabbath!

We stayed in our pajamas. I made breakfast for everyone. We just hung out and enjoyed being together: no rush, no hurry, no plans. After breakfast, Cali and I went and got into my big 'ol king sized bed with the nice warm electric blanket on it. We sat and read. Chris rested and watched some movies on netflix. Averi enjoyed her time creating things. I ended up falling asleep for a bit while I was reading. I woke up feeling refreshed. I thanked God for giving me this day, for giving me my family, for blessing me with the abundance I have. After waking up I moved downstairs to the couch (Cali by my side) and read some more. Averi's friend came over. I made them all lunch. They played on the piano. We played with the dog. We prepared for the coming week. I worked on some of my scrapbooking stuff. I read some more. We talked. We had dinner. I helped Averi flat-iron her hair.

It was a complete day of rest, of renewal, of complete delight! I felt as if God was reassuring me throughout the day that it was ok to not be in church, it was ok to not be doing this or that, it was ok to be a lazy slug all day<--this was how I was really feeling! And I tell you at the end of this day I feel completely ready to take on whatever this upcoming week has for me.

And throughout the day, this verse kept coming to mind:

Psalm 23

¹The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.

²He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.

³He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake.

⁴Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.

⁵Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.

⁶Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever.

Please, please, please do a wonderful thing for yourself and get yourself and someone you love a copy of this book.