The Eternal Sabbath

Over the past week some of the kiddos, along with myself have been fighting colds. Justin got over a really bad cough he had and is back to sleeping through the night again which has been nice (he'd been waking up during the night 3-4 times coughing and wanting a drink or looking for his buddy dog), but he still has a lingering cough here and there as well as a runny nose. Sydney has had a runny nose off and on for the past month or so, but recently seems to be more wheezy in her chest and is coughing a little ... and now she's been the one waking up throughout the night a couple of times (usually just talking, but awake none the less!). Thankfully Hailey has been completely healthy amidst everyone else battling things and is able to sleep through Sydney waking up during the night and early in the morning. I had a bit of a sore throat earlier in the week which seems better, although I still feel like I'm fighting off a cold.

When the kiddos are battling sickness they tend to be a bit more cranky, tired (not that they actually sleep more!) and more dependent on Mommy. It is always a fresh reminder for me of where I must find my strength to sustain me when feeling completely exhausted amidst caring for my children, cooking dinner, tending to the laundry and cleaning ... and of course still having plenty of energy left for my wonderful hubby at the end of the day! Although I can be quick to complain about my circumstances and fall into self-pity thinking that I deserve better ... I am thankful for days like these that remind me of my desperate need for a Savior and for His grace daily ... regardless of what each day brings my way. I am so thankful that He is always waiting for me to humbly cast all of my cares on Him ... for He will be faithful to me, just as He's always been.

This morning I was enjoying the sweetness of Spurgeon once again ...

How different the state of believers in heaven will be from what it is here! Here they are born to toil and suffer weariness, but in the land of the immortal, fatigue is never known. Anxious to serve their Master, they find their strength unequal to their zeal: their constant cry is , "Help me to serve You, O my God." If they are thoroughly active, they will have much work; not too much for their will, but more than enough for their power, so that they will cry out, "We are not tired of the work, but we are weary in it." Ah! Christian, the hot day of weariness doesn't last forever. The sun is nearing the horizon; it shall rise again with a brighter day than you have ever seen upon a land where they serve God day and night, and yet rest from their labors. Here, rest is only partial. There, it is perfect. Here, Christians are always unsettled; they feel that they have not yet attained. There, all are at rest; they have attained the summit of the mountain; they have ascended to the bosom of their God. They cannot go higher. Ah, toil-worn laborer, only think when you shall rest forever! Happy day! When mortality shall be swallowed up by life, and the Eternal Sabbath shall begin.

CHS, Morning & Evening, 1/18 a.m.