Sneaking Around at Night

I blame it on my family genes - on my mother's side. I love the night! The house is quiet. Everyone is sleeping. I can do exactly what I want to do. No one is talking. I do not have to consult with anyone on which Hallmark movie I choose to watch. It is WONDERFUL!

Then, it comes time to go to bed. Let me refresh your memory . . . the house is quiet, everyone is sleeping . . . One must continue to be quiet in order to get to bed without waking up the entire household. Never fear, I am here to help in this endeavor with a few tips for maneuvering through the house in the dark without waking up the sleeping people:

1. DO NOT leave the dishwasher door standing open. It really hurts when it hits your shins and can cause you to scream out in pain. (I put this one as number one because the memory is still very fresh!)

2.  DO NOT leave a basket of laundry in the floor at the foot of the bed (especially if there is a sleeping person in that bed). Again, when you hit that basket, it hurts . . .

3.  During the Christmas season, DO NOT put Christmas ornaments containing jingle bells around all of the door knobs. This one is very important if you need to open or shut one of those doors.

4. DO NOT attempt to walk across a room where Legos have been left on the floor. Same here as in numbers one and two - it really hurts when you step on one and it can cause you to scream out in pain.

5. DO NOT open those squeaky drawers in the bathroom that is right next to where your husband is sleeping. Just don't do it. It will wake him up every single time! To solve this problem, brush your teeth prior to him going to bed. Of course, this does do away with that midnight snack, but sometimes sacrifices must be made.

In other words, be prepared for those nighttime walks through the house in the dark. Plan ahead, people, plan ahead! Get rid of those surprises. On the positive side, it would be rather hard for someone to break into our house and maneuver around in the dark without waking up my sleeping husband.

On a more serious note, speaking of being prepared, God's word tells us something similar:

For you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. While people are saying, “Peace and safety,” destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape. But you, brothers and sisters, are not in darkness so that this day should surprise you like a thief. You are all children of the light and children of the day. We do not belong to the night or to the darkness. So then, let us not be like others, who are asleep, but let us be awake and sober. For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk, get drunk at night. But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, putting on faith and love as a breastplate, and the hope of salvation as a helmet. For God did not appoint us to suffer wrath but to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ. He died for us so that, whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with him. Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.  I Thessalonians 5:2-11

Lately, the thief has been trying to steal my JOY. With everything going on around us and thinking about the realization of my family celebrating our first Christmas without my daddy, my heart was feeling very heavy and sad. Then my eyes were opened. No, you cannot have my JOY. My salvation and my JOY come from Jesus. I am reclaiming my JOY. I will wear the breastplate of faith and love and the hope of my salvation as my helmet.

If needed, may you too reclaim your JOY! May the root of your JOY be in the hope of your salvation through Jesus.

Tami