Every Day I Wake Up And Its Sunday

Your toast lands butter side down, the dog had muddy footprints, you left the hose on all night and you now have a lake where your lawn once was... Yeah, it’s just gonna be one of those days.

Hopefully "those days" are few and far between, but even if it’s only an occasional thing it’s tough to prepare and overcome. Still, I've always found that those days rarely go through on Sundays like they do on on other days of the week. I can't exactly tell you why, but I think it’s got something to do with church and the spirit you feel there.

I've heard people say that it gives them the strength to get through the rest of the week, some talk about the peace and relaxation that comes to them on that day as they take it easy, others say that worship invites the spirit to be with them throughout the rest of the week to lighten their burdens. No matter which of these you ascribe to (ill take the eclectic view personally and go with all of the above!), Sunday is a day of rest for most people.

The Lord talked about how, "the Sabbath was made for man and not man for the Sabbath" in Mark, and its something that gets overlooked sometimes. Work is a good thing and a necessity of life, but rest is also a good thing and when taken hand in hand with work even better. If Jesus decided to rest of the seventh day as the world was created, its probably a good idea that we stick with that and go with it by keeping it holy and saving unnecessary work for other days. Oh, and lest we forget, it is one of the Ten Commandments.

If It Was Important Enough For God To Write It Down...

The island nation of Tonga keeps the Sabbath to the letter of the law, as commented on by John H. Grobergs talk on the Sabbath stating that,

When Sunday dawns on the kingdom of Tonga, a transformation takes place. If one goes downtown, he sees deserted streets—no taxis or buses or crowds of people. All the stores, all the markets, all the movie theaters, all the offices are closed. No planes fly, no ships come in or out, no commerce takes place. No games are played. The people go to church. Tonga is remembering to keep the Sabbath day holy. It is significant that the first country in the world to greet the holy Sabbath keeps the Sabbath holy.

I know that these people are blessed because of their commitment to keep the Sabbath holy, and I know that all of us can partake of these same blessings. Its a little thing that has a big impact on our lives. And really, is it that much of a stretch to be asked to take it easy once a week and only really focus on going to church and spending time with your family? Yeah, this is the kind of thing that turns "one of those days" into a really good day.

Where Your Treasure Is...

Willy Wonka, the renowned chocolate maker extraordinaire, is famous for things other then his creative recipes and his purple suit. He is also very well read, and often his wonderful quotes with his biting humor come at exactly the perfect time for any situation, giving a wonderfully fitting anecdote or snippet.

How Could You NOT Trust That Face?

One of the best places where that humor shines through is in one of my favorite quotes of all time, the one that is provoked by the little girl who wants everything and wants it right then and there. To her falling down the garbage chute after a wild and ferocious temper tantrum (that of course could be conveyed in no better way then through singing and slight comical violence against Oompa Loompa's), Willy Wonka muses, 

Where is fancy bred? In the heart or in the head?

He is merely commenting on her insatiable appetite for all things pertaining to her, but the Shakespearean quote raises some interesting questions: Where exactly do our fancies come from? Whats the difference between these fancies and things we really love? What do we put true value in?

But of course, even Shakespeare or Willy Wonka have their superiors. Jesus Christ talked of these things repeatedly, to the rich young man who was asked to give all he had to seek the kingdom of god, in the parable of the widow with her mite, and even the story of the Good Samaritan places emphasis on what is really more important in life.

For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.

What we treasure in our lives can be measured with time spent. The more time we willingly spend with something, the more we must love it. It shows where our priorities are when we pick and choose one thing over another. I know that I'm pretty much the worst when it comes to actually putting in that time with the things I really care about and showing where my love and treasure and heart truly lie, but remembering this brief scripture in Matthew 6 always gives me that perspective I need to get out of my funk and just show my love through my actions.

Shout out to my family, love you much! Shout out to my friends, love you much as well!  And in a way I want to give a shout out to the Lord, as I'm trying to show you him how much I love him and the people I'm serving with my time spent here in Tennessee!