I started to just post some stuff about why I love Sundays, but realized that without a little background, you may think that the administrator of this site didn't belong to a church! LOL! So, I better explain.
My husband and I have served on staff at several churches in the past, and Sunday was the most major work day of the week. In fact, when we served at First Baptist Church of Mansfield, Arkansas, we were bi-vocational and lived an hour away. We would wake up on Sundays, and get our little troops (ranging from newborn to age 6) ready to be gone for the WHOLE day. When I say "ready", I mean packing diaper bags for two, changes of clothes for four urchins (and a little extra for when they find the mud hole at the playground), changes of clothes for two adults (including extra nursing garb), two meals, and any supplies and preparation for volunteer responsibilities and meetings we needed to take care of during the day. We literally looked like we were going on a trip every Sunday. We would leave our house at 8 a.m. I would put our lunch and dinner up in the church kitchen and keep all of the kids busy while Bill led praise team practice. Then we would all go to Sunday School and then to service. We would then make lunch in the church kitchen after everyone else had left and put kids down for naps in the nursery. I usually found a lumpy, springy couch in the youth room to crash on for a bit. By this time it was 1:30. The problem was that most Sundays, meetings reconvened about 2:00. There was prayer team meeting, then church council, and then choir practice. By this time it was 5:00....discipleship training hour. Then it was service time again, and sometimes an after church fellowship. Ending all events about 8:00. We would then re-load our luggage and entourage and head home for our hour long drive.
....and we began the new work week fully rested. Okay, so I have a little issue with sarcasm.
Now, things did get a little better in Mansfield as time went on. A dear lady offered us an empty house that she used for furloughing missionaries to be ours for the weekend. We could come for the whole weekend if there were church events going on, or we just wanted to be with church family or make Sunday easier. The house was actually nicer than our own, so it felt like a bit of a vacation. We could come on Saturday night and I could take my time getting the kids ready and plug the crockpot in the kitchen. I could keep the kids at the house all afternoon without bothering anyone's meetings. It was truly a blessing.
However, Sundays still felt like quite a marathon. One thing the Lord really has revealed to me concerning a mom's spiritual journey, is the intense need for rest. He really convicted my heart about the purpose of the Sabbath. One of the great resources that helped me create "breathing room" in my life is a little book called Breathe by Kerri Wyatt Kent . I realized that as a mom, a day of rest is critical. Now, it isn't really exactly possible, in most cases, for a mom to have an entire day of rest. But I decided to take things as seriously as I could. One day a week that I didn't do anything that wasn't essential. I may clean up after a meal, but I didn't wipe down all the kitchen cabinets. I wouldn't do any laundry, or clean anything that wasn't an emergency spill rescue. I would feed my family, but it wouldn't be homemade chicken and noodles. It might be fruit bread made the day before or PBJ for dinner. I discovered that PBJ's served by a happy, rested mom, were much better received than fajitas slung on the table in frustration.
So now, Sundays look a little different at our house. Now, they can look different because we are not currently serving on staff at a church. We also belong to a large church that cannot accommodate all of the attendance on Sunday, so we also offer everything on Friday night. I realize that isn't possible for everyone, and in no way condemn what others do. I just rejoice that I have the opportunity to do something different. :) ....and if this is a little too out of the box for you, I'm sorry. :) But you might as well know that I'm a little out of the box. I'm sure you will figure that out soon.
So on Friday afternoon, we leave work and school and head to church. We eat hot dogs and chips, free to volunteer families and serve in childrens' ministry and on the worship team and then go to service together. We get home really late and are exhausted, but spiritually pumped for the week ahead.
On Sunday then, I do something really creative. I actually rest. Wow! What a concept. So we sleep late and have coffee. I often take the kids to the park or something where they can play and enjoy themselves and I can sit and read. Honestly, a lot of the week, I really struggle to fit in good time in the word, just like anyone else. But on Sundays, I linger before the Lord...because there is no rush. It is wonderful.
That said, it is now noon...and I need a shower. My kids have taken every stuffed animal, blanket, pillow, and couch cushion in the house and have created a mountain in the living room to bury each other in. They since have left in and headed to the concrete basement to skateboard. So I believe I better get some rears in gear.
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