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I just finished watching the movie “Enchanted” with my daughter Brindley. I’ve probably watched this movie with her a dozen or more times. At the risk of cashing in one of my few remaining “man cards,” as well as my dignity, I have to admit, I love this movie!

I really do, especially the big musical number in the middle of the movie. I usually rewind the movie and watch this scene twice. The song is called “That’s How You Know” and it centers around the optimistic and naive heroine of the movie asking a very serious New York divorce lawyer if he’s doing enough to show his intended fiancé that he really loves her. Besides just being fun, the song always makes me consider, am I going out of my way to let my wife know that I love her? I love my wife more than I could ever express, but that doesn’t mean I shouldn’t do everything I can (and then some) to try to show her how much I love her. How about you? Are you going out of your way to express love to those you care about?

This little song also reminded me of something we’re planning to teach our kids at Brookwood over Easter. We’re writing a series called “More Than A Story.” The basic idea is that the reason we find some stories so compelling, is that they capture or express an element of spiritual truth.

If you stop and think about it our God is the greatest lover of all, and He is the master of continually showing us how much He loves us. Maybe it’s a favorite song that stirs your soul, or a particularly amazing sunset that seems to be painted just for you. It could be a place that inspires you or holding your child in your arms. It often overwhelms me that God created such a vast and expansive world that still uniquely speaks His love to me as an individual. And, that’s how I know He loves me.

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Greenville, South Carolina has just recovered from a rare March blizzard. Ok, so it was just a few inches of snow, but it was still enough to shut down the city and knock out power to my house. So, I got to spend an impromptu day off at home with no electricity, no TV, no computer, no Internet, no… well you get the picture. It turned out to be a great day and it got me thinking that a snow day without power is probably a lot like what God intended the Sabbath to be. I’m not talking about some legalistic-based version of Sabbath but a day to just “unplug” and rest.

Here’s how the day went. I woke up early and spent a couple of hours reading while my wife and daughter slept in. (b.t.w. Ragamuffin Gospel  = great book) Later that morning I played in the snow with my daughter. After playing in the snow for a while we decided to walk around the block and we got to chat with lots of our neighbors who were also out. When we got back I read some more, hung out with my wife and actually had time to take a nap. At the end of the day I felt rested, recharged and closer to God and my family.

To contrast, here’s how I probably would have spent the day with the power on. Wake up check my email and blog stats, (WooHoo three visits… thanks for reading mom) then a couple hours catching up on blogs, twitter, and facebook. After this I’d turn on the TV and probably end up watching re-runs of cooking shows, Mythbusters, How It’s Made, maybe some sports (if it’s fall, who actually watches basketball ☺) or whatever else was on. Before long the day would be over and I’d be left wondering where my “day off” went.

It’s always interesting to me how God finds new ways to get our attention. For me, it took a forced day off to show me what I was missing and I’m looking forward to building a lot more “unplugged” time into my life.

I’d love to hear from you. What does Sabbath look like for you and how do you “unplug?”

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