Meaningful Mondays

Well, I made it 21.5 hours without turning on the computer. I decided to log on because recently we’ve been allowing our 4 year old daughter to fall asleep in our bed with the lights out while I type on the computer.

Breif history. She’s always been a terrific sleeper. One story, one kiss, turn on the music and blow a kiss at the door and she’ fine. Then something changed a couple of months ago. Not sure what? We began parenting her differently and then she bit a gash in her tongue. (Totally unrelated to the parenting 🙂 Besides being painful, the gash kept her from sucking her fingers. We thought that was a great way to get her to quit (it worked well for her older brother), but maybe this was when her bedtime routine changed. She started wanting me in her room for hours at bed time and she didn’t fall asleep right away. Then it switched to sleeping with the light on, locking the closet doors and an extended ( not quite 2 hours) bedtime routine in her room. It got exhausting for me and her, so I decided to let her fall asleep in our room and so far its been great. I get to type and she falls asleep fast. Maybe she’ll get used to the dark again.

Thus the reason for turning on the computer on Sunday night. (Okay, maybe I couldn’t take it anymore.) Though, next week I’m going to consider the traditional Sabbath. From sun down to sun down.

Back to turning on the computer. When I logged on to my blog, I read this in my sidebar..

“ The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it? “I the LORD search the heart and examine the mind, to reward a man according to his conduct, according to what his deeds deserve.” (Jeremiah 17:9-10)

Okay, a little conviction for turning on the computer early, but I’ll have to do a deeper search on Crosswalk to find out the true meaning. Then the gerbil, I thought I trapped in my boys room, runs by my bed where Grace (4) is sleeping. How in the world can she see the gerbil in the dark? Must have supergirl eyes and to think she had to get her eyes checked out at the pediatric eye specialist when she was a year old.

Anyway, so now I have a little guilt running through my mind about the computer and a gerbil making noise and running over my feet, and my boys and hubby (aka gerbil catchers) are out watching fireworks.

So is this a sign from God or a distraction of the enemy? My children and I are studying about the armor of God, we’re reading Little Pilgrims Progress together, and I just started a Bible study in which I’m learning about the old and new covenant. The old covenant of God (the Law), was replaced by the new covenant (Jesus) and many times Christians live in condemnation because they are still trying to live under the old law. Case in point. Yesterday I left you to ponder this scripture:

Exodus 20: 8 Remember to dedicate the Sabbath day: 9 You are to labor six days and do all your work, 10 but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. You must not do any work-you, your son or daughter, your male or female slave, your livestock, or the foreigner who is within your gates. 11 For the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and everything in them in six days; then He rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and declared it holy.

The letter of the law tells us not to work. Today that’s all I’ve done getting ready for my get together with some fellow bloggers I haven’t met yet. They’re coming to my home tomorrow and the least I thought I should do was to declutter some hot spots so they don’t injure themselves as they make their way through my home.

So, have I really kept the Sabbath? Under the old law, no, under the new, maybe. I think I could have done better. I would have liked to have had some quiet time to read the Word, but I didn’t. So, should I sit here and condemn myself like I’m prone to do? That’s what the enemy wants.

I’ve been teaching my children how Satan is sneaky and his weapons are subtle and come in the form of strife, jealousy, guilt, etc. Maybe I should listen to my own advice and put on my armor and pull out the sword. I guess, I’ll have to ponder on this a little longer. I’m just thankful God’s grace abounds!