"Where's that mulch pile?"

One of the neatest things I get to do as a pastor is to give a children's sermon in worship. This past Sunday's theme was "rest" and I asked the kids, "What do you do that tires you out?" They shouted out responses- "HOMEWORK!", "chores", running", "baseball", and such. Then I asked, "How do you recharge? How do you get new energy?" Their answers included things like "sleep", "quiet time", "eating", and the like. Then one precious little girl raised her hand and waited until I called on her. "Yes?", I asked. She went into a long answer- so long, in fact, that I wasn't sure where she was going. I thought perhaps she'd misunderstood the question. Little did I know; she was just laying the foundation. "So...," she said as she concluded, "when I get really tired and need to get refreshed, I go outside and just lay back on my dad's mulch pile, and I feel all better."

Mulch pile! How cool is that?!

In a world where we try to fit 36 hours into each and every 24-hour day, we give evidence that we've forgotten that God commanded us to observe a "sabbath" rest. A time to refrain from work, and to focus on Him, our family, and ourself. I mean, how many of us really take the time to even get to know ourself? This little girl had found the secret of life... and it was the mulch pile.

Next time you start working on the yard, you might consider not spreading out all of that shredded bark. Leave a little over in the corner of the yard, maybe under that big shade tree. And when no one's looking, after that busy day, take a deep breath, let it out slowly, and just lay back and rest. It'll do you good.