Did you ever notice that when you want the time to go slowly, it seems to speed up? And when you want it to pass quickly, it drags its feet? Yeah, that is not a new observation. But it seems to be an apt one at this particular time of the year. It's August. It's hot. And I am not on vacation. Well, some would argue that since I'm retired (you're ALWAYS on vacation, they chortle gleefully) I never have to work another day. Yeah, un-hunh. The problem, if you want to call it that, is there are always other things to fill up the time. And those things, although I'm not getting paid for them, fill up the days as if I was travelling to the office and putting in my 9-5. And when I finally fall into bed after running around like a hamster on a wheel, I don't feel like I accomplished ANYTHING! I know, I know, this happened when I worked as well. But technically when you retire, I was led to believe, this would not happen. HA!
So the other day, I got to thinking that I needed some Sabbath rest. I needed to stop doing, doing, doing and just breathe. I went outside on the deck and watched the birds for a grand total of 10 minutes. But it was so hot and sticky outside that I couldn't stand it. So I came inside once again. I sat down on the couch with the trusty iPad. But then I noticed that there were spider webs on the windowsills. How did they get there? This is a rhetorical question as I know exactly how they got there, I just don't appreciate the spiders' industrious abilities. Then I saw some dirt tracked in from my brief foray outside, then I saw a cob web on the ceiling fan, and then and then and then...Sabbath rest I kept repeating to myself. Then the husband came in and suggested that we needed to get to the grocery store before his appointment in the afternoon. I sighed dramatically and put down the iPad and stood. But then I sat down again. I explained that we have plenty of time to rush to the store, but at the moment I needed to just NOT DO anything. He shrugged and walked away.
And so I opened the iPad again and looked at a daily devotional that is delivered to my inbox everyday from Luther Seminary. And there in black and white was the verse from Genesis: "And on the seventh day God finished his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done. " If God can find time for Sabbath rest from creating the WORLD and EVERYTHING in it, than I certainly can steal some time to just appreciate life. And so that's what I did. I contemplated the blessings of my life, my husband, our kids, the granddaughter who was such a miracle, the roof over our heads and the ability to think and move and be healthy. I marveled at the symmetry of the spider web and the pattern of the dirt caused by the tread on my sneakers. There were little things. Not earth-shattering, soul altering observances. But I rested in the time spent thanking God for the marvelous things in my life. And I will try to continue to do that as much as I can to make it a habit for me. Because we all need to be reminded that we are not the Almighty. But even if we were, we need to rest from our labors. Amen.