Devotion for Today: Devotion for Today "Mondays" Psalm 145

Devotion for Today  "Mondays"  Psalm 145

I'm probably being anachronistic again, but I grew up listening to

the Carpenter's singing words to a tune that goes something like

this:  "Hanging around, nothin' to do but frown. Rainy days and

Mondays always get me down!"

Do you like Mondays?  I can't remember at whose office I saw this

but perhaps you have seen it also:  the Peanuts cartoon character,

Snoopy, the famous black and white beagle, is depicted in attitude

for each day of the week.  On Friday, Snoopy is happy and smiling.

Saturday, Snoopy is in ecstacy and floating on air.  On Sunday,

Snoopy is happy too, but he has one eye of concern as he looks toward

the next day. Then Monday comes and Snoopy is bleary-eyed, laying down

almost lifeless, with a black cloud over his head.  Does this sound

like your Monday?  It certainly seemed that way with my children this

morning-they were so tired and grumpy they could not even lift their

heads from the breakfast table to eat, griping: "Man, why do we have

to go to school?" . I felt badly for them having to start off the day

that way.  But really, Monday is not unlike any other day.  Its just

that western culture is just blessed to have normally two days off on

the week-end.  Even in some European countries this is not true.  We

learned in Italy last week that the children there go to school six days a

week (it wasn't long ago that they did that here in Germany). I said

to my son who made the remark, "How would you like to grow up in a

country where they didn't have a "Saturday?"  He said, that would be

all right, just as long as they didn't have a "Monday!"

David did not use the calendar that we use today, nor did he even have

a concept of "Monday" as we do today.  He treats each day as a blessing

and as an opportunity to serve and commune with God.  He writes "I will

extol You, my God, O King; And I will bless Your name forever and ever.

Every day I will bless You, and I will praise Your name forever and ever.

Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised; and His greatness is

unsearchable."  (verses 1-3).  Notice he says, "every day I will bless

you"?  David says this because he knows that even our Mondays have

blessings in them, and something worthy to thank our Lord about.  Some

preachers don't do this, but I work on Mondays.  And typically it is

not any better a day for preachers than for most other people.  I had

a preacher friend tell me in jest-"I never take off on Mondays, why

be miserable on your own time?"

But seriously, Monday is a good catch-up day-one to reflect upon what

happened the previous day, how to do things better next week and what

not to do again.  Its a good planning day, but most of all its another

day to rejoice in what God has done in my life.

If "rainy days and Mondays always get you down", as the song goes, then

you have a reason to smile today, because Jesus loves you and He has

given you another day.  Bless Him for it.  Have a blessed Monday!

(12 March 2001)

Rev. Jeffery C. Russell
Salem Baptist Church
Elizabeth City, NC
jefferyrussell@earthlink.net

Devotion for Today