Gift Number Nine — JC's Village

Here’s an idea: spiritual spa day.

Time to ex-grumpify that lil’ head o’ yours. First, we’re gonna go in the steam room and steam out all the stuff we can’t change. Then we’re going to go into the sauna and sit there and LIKE it, till we have all those chilly thoughts of self-accusations thawed out and melted away. After that, we’re going to go into that dark room that smells of weird incense and have all of those burdens that are not actually your burdens massaged away with one of those strange, unpronounceable massages that you’ve never heard of before - and we’re going to stay in there until we are so massaged-out that we could not possibly carry a burden that’s not ours ever again. What’s more - after this point - we would not even DARE to DREAM of even thinking about picking up something that’s not really our problem.

Then we’re going to get some of that acupuncture - and they’re going to put one of those little needles …

Okay. Maybe that’s enough spa description.

Maybe it’s also clear enough that I don’t know much about spas.

But I tell what I do know about … I KNOW that there’s something to giving yourself some serious spiritual spa-time and slaking off all the soil and toil of the day. It’s powerful to not just peel off your shoes at the end of the day, but peel off the things you thought that maybe fall somewhat short of the best thoughts you’ve ever thought. There’s something to putting God’s truth back into your head and re-orienting yourself to His ways after a day out in the world, working hard, tiring yourself out.

I bet you’d never consider putting in the garden or cleaning out the basement without planning some clean-up time for yourself when you’re done for the day. Yet so often we go through day after day after day of stressful, draining, situation after situation - and then the evening comes - and there’s dishes, and kids to put to bed - and aaalll the things - and before you know it the alarm’s going off and it’s time to start all over again.

It is HUGE to, as you peel your shoes off, to peel off that tense conversation. It’s SO VALUABLE to as you wipe the negativity, the petty comments, the toxicity - to wipe God’s warm love and gracious patience towards us into your skin.

I do this every day as I wrap up my workday and get ready to wind down before bed - I don’t think there’s a single, one way to go about doing this - but I consciously let go of all those things from today that I don’t want to carry over into tomorrow.

This isn’t something that’s only useful for days that are particularly grimy.

Everyone’s happy to shower and put on clean clothes after a day of volunteering at the camp’s anual clean up. But it’s just as nice to clean up after a holiday or just a day at the home-office getting things done. Yet - most of us only know about having quiet-times and prayer-times. Those are great - but there’s so much more. What if there’s more?

There’s so much more!

So - today when you get ready to leave work and go home - even if you’re just going from one room in your house to another - pause - and do a little spiritual spa-day, a little spiritual hygiene - so you’re refreshed, topped off, moisturized, energized and ready to go.

Enjoy!