40 Days to a Better Me: Day 05 "Have Fun"

40 Days to a Better Me—Day 05—Have Fun
When I was a boy living in the strange and distant land of Indiana, my summers were filled with the traditional family ritual of camping. Each summer we would trek to Brown County State Park, throw up a couple tents and spend a week or two there. And, I loved it!

My days were spent horseback riding, hiking, fishing, and swimming. In the evening we would sit around the camp fire roasting hot hogs on sticks and hay riding. At bed time, I would be wrapped up in my sleeping bag lying inside my pup tent. I would fall off to sleep think of all the fun I had from that day and all of the fun that awaited me on the morrow. Those were some of the fun time I remember as a kid.

Why were those days fun? Those days were fun because time was intentionally set aside for the purpose of having fun. It is so easy to get caught up in grind of life. Dr. John Maxwell said “It’s the grind that gets them.” And, he was right. It is the daily grind that gets us and causes us to take life way too seriously. We get caught up in making money and paying bills that we fail to live!

I know that Brian Tracy is a huge advocate of being the first at work and the last one to leave. He instructs his listeners to keep their head down and stay busy at work. There is nothing wrong with that advice. He is simply providing instruction on how to advance your career and increase your profitability. But understand that Mr. Tracy also advocates regular time for relaxation. You need it to keep you from burning out!
I think God in His infinite wisdom foresaw that man would NEED down time. Therefore, he instituted the Sabbath as a day of recreation for the overall benefit of man. The Sabbath was not solely created to be a day to gather corporately with others for worship. There are churches that literally run their people in the ground on Sunday all in the Name of God. Their philosophy is “the more church the better.” Are they for real? If that be the case let’s open the book and see what it says!

There are times when you need a break from the job, the daily grind and even church! Remember the Sabbath was created for man! Not the other way around. There are times when you just need to get away from it all and have fun!

Let’s look at the word “recreation.” Literally translated it means to RE-CREATE! What are we trying to recreate? We are recreating our joy and peace. We are recreating harmony and balance. If you want to be a better person and live the better life, then you must make time to have fun.

Here is your exercise. Get your calendar out right now. Take out a sharpie—a red one! Now, select a date in the next three months to kick back and have fun! You make time for the doctor, the kid’s soccer, and even the dog. It is time for you to make time for YOU! Set that date in red and unless it is an extreme emergency—KEEP THAT APPOINTMENT! You will be glad you did.