On Spending Leisure Time

Perhaps God knew that unless He legislated a day off every week, we humans would continue the endless treadmill of work and never take a break. In case you weren't aware, God did invent the weekend. It began with the Sabbath, and over the centuries morphed into Saturday and Sunday, the infamous weekend, of which most people use only the evening portion of said days to truly relax. The bulk of the time 'off' is used up in doing projects we never seem to get to during the 'work week'.

I'm a great fan of leisure. But I'm not without my own guilt when engaging in it. I suspect I'm not alone.

For example, during the Christmas vacation I enjoyed off with my children and my piano students (I didn't teach lessons for three weeks) I lay awake in bed each morning, justifying the delicious freedom to just lie there. Didn't I get up at six sharp every other morning? Didn't I keep a studio nearly full with students the other weeks of the year? Didn't I have a very busy week before the holidays? All of these deliberations ran through my mind, and it took me a couple days to stop the tape and just be thankful.

This morning I was full of thankfulness as I dozed off after getting up to make my husband a sandwich to take to work (alas he has less of a vacation than I). I relished the warm feeling under the covers, and the knowledge that no one would be expecting anything from me for the day. Well, at least until the dog got up, expecting her walk. That's leisure though, right?
And there is the kitchen, which expects to have her counters cleared at least once a day. And then, there is this Green Room, my ruminating space that I have neglected during all this leisure.

And so, I begin another day of leisure. Hope you're enjoying yours. Work will be back before we know it!

What Your Husband Isn’t Telling You by David Murrow

Despite the societal push for gender blurring, this book presents a rather black and white picture of the male mind and heart vs the female mind and heart. David Murrow has after all, only the male mind and heart by experience, but I am a female, and consequently the book brought this contrast to me as Murrow’s painstaking honesty about what was going on inside gave me a window through which to view it.

Males, he asserts have fears that are often unspoken. These fears drive the behavior of most men. By stating them, Murrow tears down the formidable wall that often separates men from their wives. His goal isn’t division, but rather understanding. There’s a bit of pop psychology thrown in for good measure, and virtually no scripture, although Murrow is at the forefront of the movement The Church For Men. Picture a mechanic-style preacher, and you will have pegged Murrow, practical and tool oriented-no platitudes. It’s what you should expect for the author of Why Men Hate Going To Church. He puts is all on the table. I found it refreshing.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Bethany House in return for my honest opinion of it.

Two Tales in One

Three Mexican fishermen adrift at sea, fishing over the side of the boat to survive, with little hope of rescue. A former high ranking American businessman for a major motion picture company with a severe addiction problem, now jobless, with a failing marriage. The author weaves an almost unbelievable tale of connection between these two unlikely entities. He should know the story well. He was the businessman who met the fishermen and interviewed them after their miraculous rescue, which became a part of his own personal rescue.

With painstaking detail and a stranger-than-fiction quality this true story brings the reader to the realization that God is Sovereign in all of our paths, the good and the bad, and that He is in the business of rescuing.

I was given a complimentary copy of The Fourth Fishermen from Multnomah Press in exchange for my honest opinion about the book.