Diligently Guarding the Commandments

Let's talk about diligence today...recently I read one of the worst books I have ever read. It was tremendously awful.

The story was about a Christian couple who decides to implement the Sabbath day into their lives, but not once do they mention turning to Scripture see what it says about the Sabbath or how it should be honored. They had a rough idea about this but really fell short when it came to diligence.

They spent a lot of time on articles, read books (from other religions) on the Sabbath, and conduct Facebook polls but they don't turn to the Word! Because they don't turn to truth they are left with a confused muddle of an idea on how to honor Shabbat. They shuffle around days they observe it, or skip it altogether, according to what fits best in their schedules. Their Sabbath day activities range from work meetings to family time at home to grocery shopping to going to carnivals. Sometimes they have work to do or do yard work. They schedule other commitments on the Sabbath, and then just "start later." It wasn't surprising that they weren't overjoyed with the production and at the end of the book they weren't sure if they would continue to honor the Sabbath.

Honoring the Sabbath day is a key ingredient to having more peace and joy, and of course to pleasing the Creator. This couple had that ingredient, so what went wrong? It was when they stopped at the idea of the Sabbath day, and brushed aside the details. They had a rough idea of the importance of a day of rest, but the instructions were not guarded.

"Diligently guard the commandments of Torah." -Joshua 22:5

What does diligence mean to you? Is it paying attention to seemingly insignificant details? Is it being consistent? Is it putting time and energy into this effort? Is it showing great care for this task of guarding the commandments? 

Having diligence can make or break a task...if you were following a recipe would it be a good idea to be diligent about it or would you just haphazardly do what you want and hope things come out correctly? Would you say salt and sugar look enough alike that you can sub one for the other? You could have a perfect cookie dough mixed up, but if you aren't diligent about checking the recipe for how long to bake them you could end up with burnt cookies and be very disappointed that this isn't the product the creator of the recipe promised. So often in recipe reviews you will see someone announce that they made some major changes in the recipe and that it turned out awful. If that's the case, the blame is on the one making the changes, not the one who made it.

We aren't just instructed to guard, but to guard diligently. Diligence with a recipe means you would do what it says. It would be totally unreasonable to expect a recipe to turn out like it's supposed to if you don't crack the eggs or turn on the stove. Same thing with Scripture's instructions, if we want the blessings that come with Sabbath then we need to do that how we are instructed. Be diligent with the details.

Vineyards You Did Not Plant

Our house came with a grapevine.

In D'Varim, just after the famous Shema verse, there is a snippet of what the Promised Land will be like. It's not only land but it is filled with good things.

"When YHWH your God has brought you into the land he swore to your ancestors Avraham, Yitz'chak, and Ya'akov that he would give you--cities great and prosperous, which you didn't build; houses full of all sorts of good things, which you didn't fill; water cisterns dug out, which you didn't dig; vineyards and olive trees, which you didn't plant--and you have eaten your fill; then be careful not to forget YHWH, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, where you lived as slaves." -D'Varim 6:10-12

YHWH did not take the Israelites out of Egypt only to commission them to build the Promised Land. He could have put them back to work--building homes and cities, planting trees and vineyards, and digging out wells--but He did not. He had already filled the Promised Land. He gave them abundant good things.

This promise is continually fulfilled. There are grapes in my yard and I did not put them there. Once a year there is an abundance of grapes. We eat them fresh. I give some away. I make juice. It is joyous.

Someone planted my grapevine. This promise of YHWH was fulfilled because someone invested herself planting a grapevine. We can invest ourselves so that others see promises fulfilled in their lives. That idea is empowering and intriguing at once. 

The above photo is but a fraction of our grape harvest so I am off to make 'wine' (it's actually just grape juice) for Passover. What are your thoughts on this? How has YHWH provided for you with something you didn't plant?