Summary: From Chaos to Calm: Day Thirty-One The Preparation Day: Part Two Scripture Memory: “Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me not away from thy presence; and take not thy holy spirit from me. Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with thy free spirit.” Psalms 51:10-12 Download the .pdf version of this article. Last time I talked about the Preparation Day. I focused mostly on preparing our homes so that we can rest and so that our family is blessed by the specialness of the Sabbath. Today, I want to focus on preparing our hearts for the Sabbath. When God created this world, he saw a need, even in the perfection of the Garden of Eden, to give us the Sabbath. It was more than just a day of rest. It was to be a sign - a memorial, or in other words a weekly reminder of how great, a powerful, and majestic our God, our Creator is! (Exdodus 31:17) Jesus said, “The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath.” (Mark 2:27). It was a gift for us. Has the day of worship come to be a regular day of the week, or is it truly a sacred day when the world is left behind and our hearts and our minds are solely focused on HIM? Too often families find themselves catching up on regular weekday activities after church. Lawns need to be mowed. Cars need to be washed. Laundry needs to be done. What happened to the Sabbath being sacred and holy? Is life so busy that we cannot take one day for our Savior? On the Preparation Day, spend time reflecting on what God’s day means to you. Ask God to renew a right spirit within your heart. It is a time of renewal, it is a time to walk away from the cares and the burdens of this sinful world and bask in the light of His face. By creating a mood of celebration in your home on the Sabbath, you will find an even greater blessing on your day of worship. Instead of making the Sabbath a time of B-O-R-I-N-G, make it a joy! We have a basket of special toys, games, and activities that only come out on Sabbath. I keep a special Sabbath bag full of quiet activities my children can do while sitting in church. Things like lace-up boards with nature scenes or of farm animals, a box a special crayons and Bible coloring pages, Bible story books. I periodically change the items for a fresh experience! Have the head of your household prepare a special prayer for the evening Sabbath meal. Light candles, and read a chapter from the Bible. Sing quiet songs of praise together with your children. Little ones especially enjoy this. The Preparation Day is about making your time of worship, extra special, meaningful, and sacred. Let your week revolve around your worship. You will feel very blessed! Click to Listen Free Printable for your Household Notebook Do you want to keep your memories tucked away in a journal, but the thought of filling up page after page is overwhelming? I have the solution for you! My {Two Lines a Day "This is My Life" Journal}. Just two lines a day. Write down the most memorable part of each day. Two Lines a Day "This is My Life" Journal Could you do me a favor and pin this image {or the one above} to Pinterest or share it on Facebook? Thanks so much! How do you prepare for the Sabbath?
