Sunny Monday.

"Wake up, Mommy. It's sunny out and it's not dowk (dark) anymore. It's a nice day!" Those are the words--uttered from the mouth of my precious 3-year-old son--that awoke me from my slumber at 9:23 this morning.......that is nearly 3 hours longer than I typically sleep, so what a treat it was to be able to catch a few extra hours of rest this morning. If only every Monday could begin so leisurely......but, then again, if this happened every week it wouldn't seem like such a savored treat now, would it?

Today at our house is all about errands and tasks.....cleaning each room of the house, finishing laundry and putting it away, getting groceries, finishing one of my lectures for tomorrow. Basically setting the stage for the rest of the week. I used to do this type of stuff on Sunday afternoon, but as I reflected on in a previous blog entry, I have made a renewed commitment to setting Sunday apart as a day of rest and reflection and renewal. So, Monday has become a catch-all day. Right now, we are watching the tail end of "Wonder Pets" while my kids are pretending that they are wonder pets, before we head off to Meijer for groceries. We are out of chocolate milk and toilet paper and have several light bulbs in our hours that are burned out, so today is the day to stock up for the week. It is so gorgeous that we might just take a walk through our neighborhood today.....feels almost like spring!

I ran across this quote on another blog--Rebecca Sower--that I often read. It is resonating with me today, particularly in light of our family's desire to recommit to healthier eating habits and daily work outs.

"Finish each day and be done with it. You have done what you could. Some blunders and absurdities no doubt crept in; forget them as soon as you can. Tomorrow is a new day; begin it well and serenely and with too high a spirit to be encumbered with your old nonsense.

This is very much a Biblical idea.....Jesus, through the pen of his authors, instructs us to leave the past in the past "....to forget what is behind" and "press on toward the goal to which He has called us." How many times do we miss the blessings of the day, the richness and joy of our immediate circumstances, because we are trapped and mired in past mistakes and failures and broken promises and missed opportunities? Yes, we certainly need to learn from our mistakes and own our failures.....but we don't need to be imprisoned by them.....Jesus set us free from all that junk. This is a good reminder to me to live each and every day FREE because I am, Praise God! Finish each day and be done with it. Period. Have a great Monday.