It's the end of a long day. My college semester is entirely online, with my leaving Illinois to come back home, due to lockdown orders. It's almost finals, and I just finished my last assignment before these final tests & essays. My brain is tired, but I'm glad to be able to enjoy tomorrow off; taking Sundays off, or occasionally Saturdays when I feel I can serve God better by shifting it, has been a wonderful gift in my college life. I need this mental break; my schoolwork is demanding, and I know God wants me to do it, but it's not everything. Sundays give me a time to relax, to enjoy some music, take very leisurely meals, and be a good friend. My mind can unwind, I don't worry about the laundry, and I have an extra blueberry muffin, because I love this part of God's Creation & I want to celebrate it on His special day.
They say every Sunday is a little Easter celebration; it's why the early Church shifted the Sabbath to the first day of the week. It's the day Jesus chose to Resurrect on, after all! Yet the Sabbath law, regardless of it on the first or the last day of the week, is so often neglected; why?
I don't think it's intentional; I think we just get too busy, and not enough people remind us of the beauty of these rules. We can be really good at teaching people the rules, but really lousy at teaching the beauty. I can really sympathize with the Pharisees; they were being devout as they knew how! Do this, do that, in this manner, and we're following God's commands. It's all so Scriptural! Yet they, like us, missed the call to go deeper. The rules aren't arbitrary, and in a lot of ways, they're not as important as we make them out to be. If you love one another, you have fulfilled the Law, is what we know from Romans 13 & the entire life of Jesus!
Please don't disregard the rules, especially not the moral ones. They still have a purpose. But the beauty--the beauty!--that's what we need to focus on. "Respect the Sabbath!" "Why?" "Because God said so!" That's convincing, if people are already disposed to follow God, and trust that He will take care of the rest; yet it misses the great command of the Great Commission if we fail to take the beauty into account!
People will always reject something that sounds arbitrary, taxing, and stupid. But people are much more open to that which is beautiful, makes sense, and seems to have a purpose. It's up to God to truly convince people of His laws, but we make His job so hard sometimes.
I have a headache, I'm unwinding from the day's stress, but I'm already happy as I think of tomorrow's rest & enjoyment of this beautiful Creation. Maybe I'll get to go kayaking! No muffins here, but there's still good food & drink to enjoy.
Thank you for reading my ramblings; they came out a lot more coherent than I was expecting when I began.
May peace & all good things be ever yours; start with Sunday! Remember--God honors those who honor Him. It's the trend all throughout the Bible, and I think there's a verse about it in 1 Samuel. Just remember that whatever you give, more will be given. This includes your time! Trust me on this one; it's amazing how much time you have when you give your time to God. I do Daily Mass, a daily Holy Hour of Prayer (just an hour with God; nothing fancy, but He appreciates it!), Sundays off, more prayer throughout the day; that adds to about 1 day & 2 hours of the other days that I totally give to God, not to mention all the time I spend in conversations with people who need it, or walking around for my own mental functioning. Yet God always provides, and even with a busy schedule & coursework, I always have time to get it done.
There are sacrifices, but what relationship doesn't?
Peace & all good things,
Alex
They say every Sunday is a little Easter celebration; it's why the early Church shifted the Sabbath to the first day of the week. It's the day Jesus chose to Resurrect on, after all! Yet the Sabbath law, regardless of it on the first or the last day of the week, is so often neglected; why?
I don't think it's intentional; I think we just get too busy, and not enough people remind us of the beauty of these rules. We can be really good at teaching people the rules, but really lousy at teaching the beauty. I can really sympathize with the Pharisees; they were being devout as they knew how! Do this, do that, in this manner, and we're following God's commands. It's all so Scriptural! Yet they, like us, missed the call to go deeper. The rules aren't arbitrary, and in a lot of ways, they're not as important as we make them out to be. If you love one another, you have fulfilled the Law, is what we know from Romans 13 & the entire life of Jesus!
Please don't disregard the rules, especially not the moral ones. They still have a purpose. But the beauty--the beauty!--that's what we need to focus on. "Respect the Sabbath!" "Why?" "Because God said so!" That's convincing, if people are already disposed to follow God, and trust that He will take care of the rest; yet it misses the great command of the Great Commission if we fail to take the beauty into account!
People will always reject something that sounds arbitrary, taxing, and stupid. But people are much more open to that which is beautiful, makes sense, and seems to have a purpose. It's up to God to truly convince people of His laws, but we make His job so hard sometimes.
I have a headache, I'm unwinding from the day's stress, but I'm already happy as I think of tomorrow's rest & enjoyment of this beautiful Creation. Maybe I'll get to go kayaking! No muffins here, but there's still good food & drink to enjoy.
Thank you for reading my ramblings; they came out a lot more coherent than I was expecting when I began.
May peace & all good things be ever yours; start with Sunday! Remember--God honors those who honor Him. It's the trend all throughout the Bible, and I think there's a verse about it in 1 Samuel. Just remember that whatever you give, more will be given. This includes your time! Trust me on this one; it's amazing how much time you have when you give your time to God. I do Daily Mass, a daily Holy Hour of Prayer (just an hour with God; nothing fancy, but He appreciates it!), Sundays off, more prayer throughout the day; that adds to about 1 day & 2 hours of the other days that I totally give to God, not to mention all the time I spend in conversations with people who need it, or walking around for my own mental functioning. Yet God always provides, and even with a busy schedule & coursework, I always have time to get it done.
There are sacrifices, but what relationship doesn't?
Peace & all good things,
Alex
