Sabbath- Joy

Note: this was written a couple weeks ago but not posted.  

This last week, I read some articles about the Sabbath. One article was really helpful since it gave me an idea of how someone spends her Sabbath time. One of the things she talked about was lighting a candle when she started her Sabbath time. I knew this was part of the Jewish Sabbath, but somehow the idea never really occurred to me until I read her article. Since my Sabbath time extends over parts of several different days, I feel like the lines might tend to blur. I like the idea of lighting a candle to signify my Sabbath time has started. Of course, the times when I leave my house, like going to church, I wouldn't be able to keep the candle lit. But, for the most part, I think this will be really helpful. As I thought about it, I decided I'd like to have a candle in a bottle like I've done with my youth. As the candle is lit during prayer time, and now Sabbath time, the dripping wax stays on the bottle to signify all of the prayers, now Sabbath experiences, that have blended together and been given to God. So, I'm in search of the right bottle so I can begin using the candle during Sabbath. That's a goal of mine for this week. 

While listening to the sermon from a week ago, another idea occurred to me. The pastor talked about several prayers, a morning prayer and an evening prayer. I realized that it would be helpful to start my Sabbath time not just with lighting a candle but to say a prayer to help me focus my time with God... a sort of greeting in my time with Him. If I were to spend time with a friend, I would start our time together by greeting my friend. I should do the same with my Sabbath time. With a friend I would also leave with parting words, making it also a good thing to do as I end my Sabbath time. To start, I think I will find a prayer to use each time, but later I may change my mind. We will see. 

The last thing I want to talk about is also from the same sermon. The pastor talked about Simeon and Anna, about the joy they felt from seeing Jesus. I was reminded of some times in my life when I was struggling and spending time with a child gave me so much joy that I was comforted. When I was first grieving my dad's passing, I spent time caring for a boy at work. While some may not have understood why I went to work, I knew that the joy those few hours would give me would give me some comfort from my pain. I need to think about that as I think about my Sabbath time. How can I experience the joy of a child- both remembering the joy I had as a child and the joy I experienced spending time with children?