The Lazarus Experiment Day 5

When you have extra anything to play with, it's worth having some fun.

If you have a little extra money at the end of the month, it makes sense to enjoy yourself.

If you have a little extra snow in the yard (and almost any snow is extra snow) it makes sense to throw it at somebody.

If you have a little extra water - a river or a lake or a pond or a pool - it makes sense to dive in.

Spontaneity is seizing extra time and having some fun.

I know what you just thought: Extra time?! Yeah, sure! Show me some of that! I don't have "extra time" - can you find some for me?

Here's something to ponder: all the time Lazarus had once he came out of the hole he was in was extra time.

Extra time gives us time to play with, time to do something silly, outrageous, fun. Extra time provides the space for something unexpected to happen. Extra time gives a big fat green light to spontaneity.

But you're still back there, looking at your watch, wondering when I'm going to finish up this little rant so you can get on with all the stuff on your precious to-do list today. Right? Right.

If you claim to have new life because of Jesus, the terminus (end) of your life has been removed. "Where, O death, is your sting?" Death no longer has power. The end of our lives is not the end. Jesus brings this to you, in his wonderful package of salvation bennies: eternal life.

Do you understand what that means? You have extra time.

Something tells me Lazarus would not have fished his DayTimer out of the trash can and begun filling it with appointments and lists. I think he would have left it alone. Or burned it in effigy. Lazarus would have considered every moment a gift, and he would have jumped at the chance to do something wild - for and with Jesus.

Spontaneity means jumping on the bed without asking. Rolling down the windows without worrying about your hair. Grabbing your husband and skipping across the yard. Or grabbing a shopping cart and riding it across the Walmart parking lot. (Yes - it's been done! We want pictures, Cyn!)

What keeps us from spontaneity? The feeling that we just don't have the time. But Lazarus-types have all the time in the universe. It's a gift.

And yet - you're still reading this instead of playing with the time you have.

Go do something!

****

Suggested Scripture For Today: Matthew 6:25-36

Suggested Ideas:

1. Ask Cyn about how to ride a shopping cart!
2. Combine yesterday's note and today's and plan some intentional spontaneity.
3. Do something you haven't done since you were ten years old.
4. Call a friend out of the blue, pick them up in ten minutes, and head out without a plan. Tell us about it!

My day 5 response

Day 5 in search of sponteneity - never been my strong suit despite years of attempts by my sweet late husband to get me to be more "spur of the moment" and less "planned everything out". Problem was when ever i tried to be spontaneous I got suspicious looks and distrust so you see, sponteneity is not my strong suit.

That being said, my day was to be a quiet one. I'm not feeling great and I had planned a quiet day. Then things got a little topsy turvy and suddenly the phone rang. My beautiful daughter in law calling to see if I wanted to come play with her and my sweet grandson. I'd only get to share a precious 30 minutes but it would be a PRECIOUS 30 minutes. So I went. Into the public, which is not my friend lately, by car, that I didn't want to drive (and I love driving) using my cane (that I seem to be attached to like a dang siamese twin growing from my right arm like an appendage I've never really been without it's so comfortable there now). I've not done anythng spontaneously in a long while - does this count? I sure hope so. I don't have much else today ... lol sometimes you just take it as you go along... enjoying what you have and making the best of it all.