What the Day of Rest Was
Think back to just three or four generations ago, concerning Sunday church attendance in this country. Let me paint this canvas for you.
Preparations for Sunday church and a day of rest begins on Saturdays. The sound of mowers would echo early through the neighborhoods. Fathers were out mowing, trimming the hedges, in order to beat the heat of the mid-day sun. Mothers and children are stripping beds, and washing was in full swing by nine am. Suddenly, the long clotheslines, in all the backyards, were filling up with drying sheets, blowing in the summer breeze. Inside the houses, everyone is now in full-on cleaning mode of everything. Bedrooms are being organized and vacuumed, floors washed, windows cleaned. Before noon, moms and children are heading to the supermarket to buy groceries for the week. It’s the busiest day there, since all the stores and supermarkets are closed on Sunday.
Saturday mornings were a sacred time, and youth sports did not dominate much of the time of the parents, until later on in the day. After a nice grilled cheese sandwich for lunch for the entire family, dad would head off to the gas station, to fill up the family wagon, and then on to the hardware store for tools and parts for home repairs. The afternoons were seen with kids released from their chores, and they headed out to play at the ball park down by the school. Others can be seen weeding in the vegetable and flower gardens. Dad is out in the driveway, washing the station wagon, and all the kids work to sponge it and clean it. The house smells like fresh air, and later in the afternoon, the moms return to the house to make a big supper, maybe the biggest of the week. Baked chicken maybe, or a pot roast, or liver and onions.
After supper, everyone but the dads clean up the table and the kitchen and the dishes are dried. The kids’ dirty clothes are pulled off of youngsters who haven’t been near the tub since last Saturday. Water was precious, and everyone got bathed in the same water. With hair washed, and now drying, the children and youth have a clean look about them. Dad disappeared with the station wagon on a special mission. He finds himself in a rather small crowded shop, the uniformed employees frantically reaching up high and around each other, filling box after box with a large variety of fresh donuts and pastries.
He returns home, and pulls out his Sunday suit from his closet, and then instructs his children to do the same. No work, except cooking, will be allowed tomorrow. Both parents help the kids to bed, and mom and dad watch their favorite one-hour variety show, maybe Ed Sullivan or Jackie Gleason. Now that the day is done, everyone is looking to a much-needed day of rest tomorrow.
The day becomes light early, and Sunday is here! I smell Maxwell House or Folgers ‘coffee in the can’, as it was brewing. The dad is making bacon and eggs, and all the kids come out of their rooms, fully dressed for church. Everyone has a few donuts now with breakfast, but the rest are being kept for after church. Having piled the dirty dishes in the sink and left for later, hands are washed, and teeth are brushed. The quick search for bibles is nearly completed, and you can hear the cleaned eight-cylinder wagon warming up in the garage. If the sun is out, dad gets out the $10 Kodak black and white camera, snaps off a few pictures, where upon then everyone finds their normal place in the car.
Now, the packed car is off to church. In the church parking lot, you can see girls in light colored dresses, and boys in razor sharp ironed slacks. Mom is wearing a blue netted hat that covers her eyes, with a matching blue dress, and dad looks good in his Sears and Roebuck suit and tie. In a neighborhood of 400 families, only one or two homes are quiet, and do not drive away to church. The different denominational churches are packed and noisy, filled to capacity. Not a car moves in the streets, except a patrol car or two, with officers exchanging stories of that last good donut.
It’s the first day of the week, the preachers look happy, and God is
honored.
All is right in the world.
This is the Old Testament Command,
“Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.” Exodus 20:8
This is the New Testament Command,
“So there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God.” Hebrews 4:9
Our prayer for today,
Father, thank You for revealing Your heart to me today. Help me to restore the dignity of the Your most holy day of rest, in Jesus’ name, amen!
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