Poor Sleep, New Car, and Bible Insights
Morning
I didn't sleep well last night. I was asleep by 1am. I woke off and on throughout the night and was praying. I started to wake for the day before 7am. By 7:12am, I was wide awake. All last week, I was asleep by 1am and didn't wake until about 7:45am. That was the case up through yesterday. Except maybe Saturday? I think I got up earlier that day because I needed to go in for my drivers license...hehehe I'm not really sure why I was so restless last night, though. Nothing that was concerning me was on my mind before bed. I didn't read last night. Could that be the reason? I was watching a round table discussion for S3E3 of The Chosen up until about 12:15am.
Reading fiction or watching an entertaining TV show helps me disengage my mind. But reading non-fiction or watching something that takes me deep into an important topic keeps my mind engaged. I'll have to be mindful of this. I hadn't really thought about that much. I used to watch TV before bed. I stopped doing that a while ago when I fasted TV once. Lately, I've been reading fiction before bed and that had the same affect as TV used to. But I'm preferring reading over TV now that I'm reading so much. It feels healthier...LOL
I'm one who can wind my mind down reading or watching something for entertainment. It doesn't stimulate my mind at all. The round table discussions from The Chosen are amazing and very engaging for me, though. Something else I did last night was did a deeper dive into the word hate as used in Luke 14:26. It was part of one of our devotionals last week. We talked about it yesterday and then I decided to find out what the original Greek said and what it might have meant back when Jesus said it. Matthew recounts the same message but states it differently than Luke. That led me to looking into Luke's writing style.
I have learned that each book's author had a style. And some books have varying styles within the same book. It depended on what the author was trying to convey to the reader at the time. Some of that gets lost in translation unless we research those things closer. Doing that research so late last night also stimulated my mind quite a bit. I'll not go deep into it here, but Luke often used hyperbole in his writing. And so did Jesus when He spoke. Luke wrote that as Jesus may have said it. Whereas Matthew's style shifted to a less hyperbolic tone.
Essentially, Jesus was simply saying that if we love others more than Him, we can't really be His disciple. Hate in the full context of His lesson is more about to love less than more so than what we view as hate today; which is what Matthew describe it as. Interesting, and engaging, stuff...hehehe
Tonight, I need to remember to either do nothing, or just read one of my fiction books...LOL
Afternoon
Today is going well so far. I had my weekly meeting with my boss. We meet most Monday mornings. I like these one-on-ones. We often go past the scheduled time...LOL We typically start off by talking about our weekends and then transition into the work week. We usually have a lot to talk about.
One of the personal things I mentioned to him was how I bought a new car Saturday. That's right! I bought a new car...LOL It's actually my first ever brand new car. I've always bought used. I'm really excited about having my first brand new car. That fact only played a minor role in the decision. I didn't even really give that a thought while I was doing it...hehehe It was mostly a realization after the fact. But I suppose deep down, it was something that contributed.
My 90 year old neighbor was excited for me. I gave her a quick drive around the neighborhood...LOL So, besides the salesman, she is my first passenger. Well, only passenger so far...LOL
I'm a little tired, but doing really well considering how poorly I slept last night. I got to thinking more about that and realized I also had a late dinner. Normally I don't have a full meal Sunday night. I typically eat an early dinner before my call with Cherie. I didn't do that yesterday. I took a drive in my new car instead...LOL I did eat while I was out. But I didn't do my normal timing with anything. So I ate a full meal after the call. I probably should have just done something light. Having a full meal that late may have impacted my sleep. I typically just have a small snack after our call...hehehe
I was originally going to do a meatless Monday. I changed my mind and have decided to have fish tacos for dinner tonight.
I'm still doing well with my Bible in a Year reading. I'm just past the half way point for the year...considering we are in July, that makes sense, right?!.LOL This year has been different than last year. Last year, I simply read the Bible. I think I've mentioned this fact...this year, I'm listening to The Bible Recap podcast. Also, when I start a new book, I watch a video from BibleProject that explains the book I'm about to read. I've learned so many new things by doing that. That actually helped with the above mentioned research into Luke's writing of the word hate and the context surrounding it. I didn't just look at the original Greek, I also looked into his writing style. That idea comes from The Bible Recap and BibleProject because those two resources do a good job of explaining such thing. I haven't gotten to Luke yet with the Bible in a Year plan this year. So last night's research was independent of that. But the spirit of the research was inspired by my daily readings. I love how that has changed the way I read the Bible ❤️
Evening
The fish tacos turned out great. I've come up with a taco seasoning that works well with fish. I imagine it would work for chicken too. I had tilapia this time. Last week, I had cod one of the nights I made tacos. I think I like the tilapia better than the cod. I need to get salmon. I definitely love salmon tacos...hehehe
I'm trying some new (to me) tortillas. They are made by Siete and made from cassava flour. I love the texture and flavor. And they hold together really well while I'm eating the tacos. They might become my go-to tortilla.
I watched a couple more round table discussions for season 3 of The Chosen...hehehe And then I did today's devotional. Just as soon as I finished the devotional, it was time for the Home Run Derby. And that's what I've been watching the rest of the evening...hehehe
I'm thinking about doing a road trip with my new car...hehehe I need to decide where to go and when. Going to Disney World isn't really a road trip. So, even if I do end up there again soon, I'll not count that...LOL I'm thinking about either finding a place in Florida far from home, or even possibly going out of state near Florida. I'd like to go somewhere I've never been. It will be just a weekend trip, though. So, somewhere close enough for that. But a place I can stay a night or two, enjoy my new car, and experience something new ❤️
I'd also like to plan a weekend trip up to Indiana soon. For that trip, I'll fly. I don't want to take any time off for these trips...hehehe
Overall, I had a good day. It seems that my poor sleep didn't really impact my day. That's good! I'll probably sleep really well tonight.