Rhythms of Rest

I love the principle of Sabbath. 

Since I was a little girl, dressed in frilly dresses and patent leather shoes, Sabbath has meant going to church with my family.   I was raised in Southern Baptist congregations, which meant Sunday School first, followed by worship service where the choir and congregation sang good old protestant hymns like, Just as I Am  and Amazing Grace.  The preacher then gave a sermon (which lasted about twenty minutes and felt like an eternity).  Afterwards, everyone stood around and visited with one another before loading into cars and heading home.  Opening the front door, we were engulfed with the smell of pot roast that had been cooking while we were gone.  Lunch was delicious.  Always, so delicious.  Something about being at church made you extra hungry.

I liked church then and I like it now.  For me, Sabbath will always include public worship.  Being with like minded people who encourage and support me, and love me with all my faults, is important. That community of believers has changed over the years.  Right before I was married, I converted to the Mormon faith and subsequently, my husband and I raised our children in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.  The Sabbath continued to be a day of going to church (much longer meetings), where we sang hymns, partook of the Sacrament and listened to inspiring talks.  I've served in the youth, children's and women's ministries, which have kept me busy.  Sunday isn't a day of rest.  There's visiting afterwards and then going home to a good meal (which now has been prepared by me, instead of my mother).  Some things change, some things stay the same.

As a Latter- Day Saint, we believe the Sabbath is a holy day and the meeting where we partake of the Sacrament is the most important one we can attend.  We covenant each week to remember our Savior, to honor the covenants we have made with Him and to serve Him to the best of our ability as we partake of the emblems that represent his body that he willingly sacrificed for us.  Sometimes when you do something often, you tend to take it for granted.  I've been guilty of going through the motions without thinking about the holiness of the sacrament.   Lately though, I've been trying to be much more intentional about preparing myself before I arrive at the meeting and keeping my mind and heart focused on my Savior during the ordinance of the Sacrament.  

I've been reading lots of books on the Sabbath , as I'm so interested in how people of other faiths keep it.  The Jewish sabbath is especially beautiful, and faithful Jews are serious about their sabbath observance.  Lighting candles, special meals and prayers are some of the things that set this day apart from the other six.  I like the idea of starting and ending sabbath at sundown.  I've been trying to prepare my home, food and church responsibilities so I can be ready to begin my sabbath at sundown on Saturday (Jews begin theirs on Friday).  It feels really good to know that I won't be scurrying around trying to gather things up to go to church or cooking big meals on Sunday.  

But I'm getting ahead of myself.  The book that has motivated me to think about how I keep the Sabbath is Shelly Miller's Rhythm of Rest.  I've read it twice in the last month.  It's so good.  And even though we are of different faith communities, we both agree on the importance of keeping Sabbath and that it is ordained by God to be a holy day.  Shelly teaches that Sabbath is for worship, but also for rest.  Americans in general have a hard time stopping to rest, and practicing Mormons have a hard time resting on Sunday, because of all their responsibilities.  It's just not part of the culture.  I'm ready to change that for myself.

 "The Sabbath is not for the sake of the weekdays; the 

weekdays are for the sake of the Sabbath.  It is not the

interlude, but the climax of living."

Abraham Joshua Heschel

Taking some ideas from Rhythm of Rest and other places, I've come up with a plan to help set the Sabbath apart in a special way.  It doesn't always work out, but here are some of the things that I've been practicing in the past few months.

I start thinking about the Sabbath about the middle of the week, realizing that I can start then to prepare myself and my surroundings for a restful Sabbath.  What will we be eating over the weekend?  Have I shopped for the items we need?  Will we be having guests at our table, or will it just be the two of us? Is the house clean?  Do I have gas in the car?  Have I planned and prepared my church responsibilities?    I'm serving in the primary organization right now, and that means preparing lessons, making sure the teachers are in place and prepared, etc.  

"Saturday is a special day, it's the day we get ready for Sunday."  This children's song teaches an important lesson about Sabbath preparation, but waiting until Saturday to try to prep myself and my home for Sabbath is a recipe for complete exhaustion.  It takes more than one day for me to have my home ready for the Sabbath.  I like to take a long hot bath with candles and bubbles on Saturday evening.  This is my signal that Sabbath has begun.

We have afternoon church this year, which means our services begin at 1:00, leaving me time in the morning to enjoy a nice breakfast with my husband, take a long walk or sit in my favorite chair and read.   I'm looking forward to fires in the fireplace and snowy days. These activities are nourishing to my spirit and help me feel rested.  I make the bed and wash whatever dishes won't fit in the dishwasher and other than that, I don't do any house work.   I light candles and we eat in the dining room.  I make special food, that we don't eat the rest of the week and maybe even dessert! 

The Lord knew we needed a day to rest from our work and to focus our thoughts on Him.  Remember the Sabbath day and keep it holy is a commandment, after all.  The to-do list will still be there on Monday.  For me, learning to "keep the Sabbath" more intentionally is coming from a place of love, rather than obligation.  He loves me and wants to give me this beautiful gift of Sabbath.  I love Him and want to accept it with open hands and heart. 

It's my favorite day of the week. 

Feed My Sheep

It's that time of year again, when the Primary presidency honors our teachers for their dedicated service to the children over the last twelve months.  As much as we love the kiddos and enjoy teaching them, we recognize that committed teachers who show up each Sunday prepared and ready to share the love of Jesus with their class is a wonderful gift and we never want to take them for granted.  We know it involves time and sacrifice to magnify your calling as a primary teacher.

We hesitate to add another meeting to the already busy schedule, but it seems that we've hit on a solution that works for everyone.  We prepare a breakfast, and invite the teachers out on a Saturday morning from 9:30 - 10:30.  The time is early enough not to encroach on a family's Saturday plans.  We keep the meeting short and feed them good food.  It works!

We use this time to do a little teacher training and pass out materials for the upcoming year.  The theme for our meeting this year was Feed My Sheep.  We took ideas to share with the teachers from a talk entitled, Sheep, Shepherds and Sheepherders by James Moss.

Sheepherders ride behind their flock, often using dogs to do the work of directing the sheep.  A shepherd leads his flock and they know his voice and follow his leadership.  These pictures were taken in Jerusalem, where I saw a modern shepherd leading his sheep.  

When he sat down to rest, they grazed around him, but never left his sight.  And when he was ready to leave, he spoke to them and off they went.  

"The sheep hear his voice: and he calleth his own sheep

by name, and leadeth them out.  And when he putteth forth

his own sheep, he goeth before them, and the sheep follow

him: for they know his voice.  I am the good shepherd:

the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep."

John 10: 3-4, 11

We discussed how we could be good shepherds to our little flock of primary children, trying to love and teach as Jesus would by,

* loving all the sheep

* numbering the sheep to determine who is lost

* go out after the lost sheep and stay out until it is found

* lead the sheep by personal example

* feed the sheep

We have great primary teachers who love the children and do a great job teaching their classes.  We just wanted them to know how much we love and appreciate them.

Lunch on the Rock

With all the anxiety and stress on Election Day, I think I was in the best place possible - the woods.   Taking a hike is one of the most centering things I can do for myself.  Deeply breathing the fresh air and the earthy scent of the leaves, crossing over mountain streams and getting the heart pumping while climbing a mountain, all with the best company possible is medicine for the soul.  Besides, I had already voted, so I could say a prayer for God's will to be done and go on about my day.  This election is a mess.  A real mess.

Abby and Kelly wanted to hike John Rock before all the leaves were gone, and we barely made it.  Last year we hiked this same trail and I tripped on a rock on the way down, taking a nasty fall.  Falling face first into the dirt, I sat up covered in blood and looked pretty scary.  The girls administered first aid and took good care of me.  Today, they reminisced about that day in great detail, remembering the exact spot I fell.  I can only remember how much my nose hurt.  They also brought along a first aid kit, just in case.  Since then, I've started hiking with trekking poles and I feel much safer on rocky and root covered trails. 

 It looks as though the windy days have brought down some tree branches that were covering the trail.  It is so dry, and I've never seen the water so low in the creeks.  We didn't even get our feet wet, when crossing, which I guess is good, but often happens in this  spot.

Kelly and I took lots of pictures along the way,

and they spotted a newt, but it was too fast for her to catch.

Just hanging out in the trees...

This girl is a monkey.

I never tire of the excitement I feel when I step out on the rock and see this view.  It was a cloudy day, but the sun came out often and rewarded us with some spectacular photos.  It was actually perfect weather for hiking.  We started out cool, but warmed up and shed our jackets as we climbed the mountain.

The best lunch spot at 3010 feet.

I had to keep asking the girls to come back a little.  They were comfortable on the rock, having been here before and maybe a little too adventurous for me.   They were making me nervous.

Our John Rock selfie with a view of Looking Glass.

I'm pretty sure this was a dry creek bed.  Oh, this drought!

One of the fun things about this trail are all the bridges you get to cross.  It makes me so happy to see young people enjoying the outdoors, with no devices except cameras. 

Such beauty.  I said silent prayers all day for the opportunity to live in this place, to be healthy enough to hike, and to share this experience with my friends.

Last picture of the hike, beside the Davidson River.  I love these girls so much, but they're growing up too fast.  I'm thrilled that they still want to hang out with me and go hiking.   Notice that Kelly found a way to end up with muddy shoes.  A little water and the dusty trails was all it took.  She ran, jumped, hung from trees and laughed all along the way.  I love her spunky spirit.

When you climb a mountain, you've earned an ice cream cone.

October Grace

First Monday sharing from my Gratitude Journal

-dinner with family

-a beautiful new home for Maury and Sandy

-big pot of tomato soup

-jars of apple butter

-safe arrival for Travis' family

-Margeaux's smile

-bouquet of fresh basil

-the scent of a freshly bathed baby

-playing in the dirt with Margeaux

-lemon pies with whipped cream

-rain

-watching Margeaux sign new words

-cooking with Travis

-new music from Dillon

-shopping with Margeaux

-yummy food

-a busy kitchen

-walking on a windy day

-bouncing Margeaux to sleep while

singing Popcorn Popping on the Apricot Tree

-observing a little family have bedtime stories

-visit with Dad and Yvonne

-apple cake made with apples from our trees

-a testimony from a little boy who doesn't 

quite have his"r's down pat

-tights and boots

-heat on a cool morning

-preparing Becca's favorite dish

(chicen piccata)

-jars of blackberry jam

-frozen berries on my oatmeal

-bath time with Margeaux

-lunch with friends

-frozen custard

-introducing Margeaux to the Sandburg goats

-a car problem that turns out to be minor

-Archer's smile

-goodbyes with kisses

-a quiet house

-clean floors

-clean dogs

-a crispy roast chicken

-Amazon deliveries

-fall color from Black Balsam

-Dillon and Jantzen, unharmed in

a car accident

-bags of wheat for storage

-a sub for CTR 4 class

-heating system, cleaned and serviced

-visit with Emily and Whitney

-holding Sadie

-a gift of two new books

-jars of green tomato relish

-clean carpets

-face time with Becca and Margeaux

-my Vitamix blender

-fresh hair color

-listening to stories over dinner

-visiting teachers

-fall decorations

-pumpkin mini muffins

-Bitsy's yoga class

-forgiveness

-a smile on Kenzie's face

-a clean house

-poached pear pizza

-a long hot bath

-picking up pretty leaves

-green smoothie that I like

-70 degree weather

-garlic bed planted

-watching Mark eat out of the pan

-purple berries

-new tires

-new job for Kenzie

-great book discussion

-eyes that can see

-bears at the pond, captured on video

-the privilege to vote

-a new brussels sprouts recipe

-clean and defrosted freezers

-leftovers for dinner

-fresh zucchini bread

-hike to Table Rock

-gift cards for new babies

-impromptu singing

-lots of laughter

-stake conference

-lunch on the deck

-beautiful fall day

-George Winston's Autumn

-crunchy leaves under foot

-half a beef in the freezer

"Be ye thankful."

Colossians 3:15