Sunday, July 26, 2015

Put On Your Sunday Clothes

I grew up watching musicals and I always enjoyed Hello. Dolly. It was fun watching Barbara Streisand strutting around in fantastic clothes belting out "Before the Parade Passes By". It was even funner (I know that's not a real word) watching Walter Matthau "singing" and looking grumpy (I love that man). And I think my favorite part was watching the "Put on Your Sunday Clothes" scene at the beginning (and this was way before Wall-e was even dreamed of). So when I decided to write a few of my thoughts about Sunday, I immediately thought of that scene and that is what I titled this post.

Recently, I have been trying to fill my mind with positive, inspiring quotes and ideas. To fill my mind with them, I have endeavored to memorize bits and pieces from books and songs and scripture. It is slow-going, because I have never had a very strong mind for memorization. But I now have a few scriptures, a Dickinson poem, and a Dostoevsky quote under my belt. Hanging on one of my walls is another scripture that I am trying to memorize (and it has been on the wall for months--that is how slow I am):

 13 ¶If thou turn away thy foot from the sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on my holy day; and call the sabbath a delight, the holy of the Lord, honourable; and shalt honour him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words:
 14 Then shalt thou delight thyself in the Lord; and I will cause thee to ride upon the high places of the earth, and feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy father: for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.
Isaiah 58:13-14

As a result, the Sabbath day, or Sunday, is something that I have had on my mind a lot. These days, many people grow up not seeing how or why Sunday is or should be different than any other day of the week--apart from the fact that it is part of the weekend and so many people don't have to work or go to school on Sunday.



For me, Sunday is a reminder that a loving Heavenly Father and his son, Jesus Christ, "rested" from their physical labors after creating this beautiful earth for us. It is a day set apart from the rest of the week, made for us, so that we can try to separate ourselves as much as we can from the daily toil of the week and focus on the things and people that matter most--focus on the Lord's work and His glory which is His children and their development and progression towards Him, the source of all true happiness and peace (Moses 1:39).

All my life I have put on Sunday clothes and attended 3 hours of church on Sunday. Only recently am I truly recognizing what a "delight" that Sunday can be. When I go to church, I am aware that the people giving the talks and reading and discussing the lessons are imperfect people, just as I am. I am aware that in proclaiming that there are eternal truths that do not change and that there are rules or commandments that we must follow if we want to experience true, lasting joy, I set myself up for looking like a hypocrite when I do not live up to those standards completely--but that doesn't mean that I shouldn't continue to strive and work towards those standards. And my own deficiencies and the deficiencies of those around me do not change the fact that I feel the truth of what is being said and shared as we meet together on Sundays and read the scriptures and the words of the prophet today.

I have come to love Sundays and delight in them because they help me see myself as I really am. They help me focus on my family and on the life and mission and love of Jesus Christ, who helps us do the hard things in this life, do everything in this life-- and helps us better appreciate and love the times when life is not as difficult. Sunday reminds me that I am a child of God and so is the person standing next to me in the elevator--and I should treat them as such. Sunday reminds me that my life and my personality & talents and my happiness are important to God--and if I give them to Him, He can do some pretty marvelous things through me.

I haven't got it all figured out yet. I probably won't for a long time. But I have felt these things and they are changing me into someone that I like a little bit better than before.

-elin
"Put on your Sunday clothes when you feel down and out. Strut down the street and have your picture took. Dressed like a dream your spirit seems to turn about...."

1 comment:

  1. Love it. Just today, my brother recommended a book called "The Gift of Rest: Rediscovering the Beauty of the Sabbath," by Joe Lieberman. You might like it.

    Happy Sabbath!

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