Remember Saturday Night Preparations?

“Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy."

Exodus 20:8

And I'm sure you may remember this verse from Exodus.  My mother took this verse and not only applied it to the Sabbath day, or Sunday.  She began our preparations for keeping the Sabbath holy on Saturday night.

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Not to imply that this was our bathroom, but there was the requisite scrubbing at the hands of a mother who took cleanliness to heart and often to extremes.  So, in turn, we all got our Saturday night scrubbing.

And this included the head of hair we'd been blessed with, each thick and hard to dry but clean it must be!  The shine must be there on Sunday morning if no other morning in the week.  So, our scalp's got a good massage too.

Sunday best was laid on each of our beds, and these were clothes we were not allowed to wear on any other day, except for weddings and funerals.  My dresses were starched stiff and sometimes were scratchy.  The boys' pants creased knife sharp, and they had fake ties to wear.  Remember those?

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Most often, my dressy shoes were black patent leather, which meant that the worst I had to do was take a damp cloth and remove any dust, dirt or scuffs.  The boys had to do the entire cleanup, polish and buff routine.

But Mother wanted us to look our best for church.  As I grew older I understood this as I began to study God's Word.  Not only are we preparing for the Sabbath.  We are preparing to go into God's house, and he is due our very best in all respects.  This is where Mother's true heart resided -- in God and in honoring him each and every day.  And she was teaching us to do the same.

Q4U:  Do you have similar memories on Saturday nights, or maybe it was Sunday morning?  Or were you perhaps born at a later time when we had adjusted our thoughts to an understanding that what we are on the outside is not as important as what is on the inside?  I'd love to hear from you!

A Double Scoop of Blessing on the Sabbath

Each Sunday morning during our worship service one of our pastors calls the children forward for their Children's Sermon.  Today it so happened that it was our Pastor Husband (we enjoy the benefits of a married couple pastoring our church).  Pastor Husband began by talking to the children about turkeys and what was the turkey's first name.  There were many shouts of "Tom!" (this just happens to be his first name too).  The message then turned to what they were thankful for today.

A soft voice came out of the crowd of children and said, "The sun!"  And today the entire congregation was in agreement with the little girl who'd uttered everyone's thanksgiving.  Living in the Pacific NW in late fall and winter means many days without the benefit of sunlight, and this morning we awoke to a strange occurrence.  A large bright orb was beaming down on our corner of the country, and yes, we were all blessed by its presence.  Thanks be to God for a child so small who recognized her gratitude and was able to speak to it.  So, this was scoop one.

Now, for scoop two.  Today our family has been blessed once again by new life.  Our second great-grandchild, Everett William Ellis, was born at midday weighing in at 7 lbs. 2 oz. and at 21" long.  A family photo shows him with his mom, dad and big sister, Kylie, who is already calling him Baby E.  Everett made his appearance in this big world about two weeks early but is doing very well.  We are so grateful today that God has provided this new life for our family to nurture and love.  Thanksgiving will truly be a day filled with thanks for Everett's safe arrival, his mom's good health, his dad's safe return from the Marines, and sister Kylie's love for him.

The gift of offering back to God our gratitude is one we all too often take for granted.  We should take time to notice not just the stunning things God places in our lives but also the tiny gifts along the way, the ones we most often overlook and thereby fail to offer up thanksgiving.

"Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances;
for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus."

I Thessalonians 5:16-18 (NIV)

Remember the Sabbath

Observe the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Work six days and do everything you need to do. But the seventh day is a Sabbath to God, your God.   Exodus 20:8 (The Message)

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Eyes slowly open.  Clock says 4:30.  Toss, turn, try to slip back into sleep.  Now it's 5:30.  A peek out the window shows the night is slowly turning to day.  Light is changing.  On the cusp of a new day.  And then it comes to me.  It's Sunday, the Sabbath day, the holiest of days in the week.

"Up," I tell my mind and my body.  Enough time until the clock goes off to sit quietly and think on this day.  My mind wanders to childhood memories of Sundays, a time when family truly honored the Sabbath, a day of rest as ordained by God in the verse of Scripture above.

In my family, Sundays were all about worship, Sunday School classes, and family time.  The most menial of tasks were allowed but there were things that weren't allowed because it was Sunday.  As children, we weren't allowed to go roller skating, attend a movie, play board games or cards, and as a young girl, I wasn't allowed to do any sewing or needlework as that could be defined as "work" and not a part of the rest we were supposed to be observing.  It was confusing because mom cooked and cleaned up in the kitchen, but dad explained that this was a necessity of life and that it wasn't work in the same sense of the word.

Despite all the invisible scars left behind by my dysfunctional home life and at the hands of my mom, I'm so pleased that this gift of the Sabbath was passed along by my parents to me.  I still look on my Sunday as Sabbath.  I try my best to treat it as my day of quiet and rest along with my husband.  We may engage in some pleasant activity, such as a concert at a local church, but beyond that we limit ourselves to time at home or in nature taking in God's creation.

Soon, another week begins.  How will you observe your Sabbath?