Last time I preached at chapel, we talked about the discipline of celebration. I'm sure many of you have sat in a Sunday morning pew and heard the Joys and Concerns and noticed that there are usually more concerns, because we rarely share the small joys. We express the miracles and healing, but sometimes we forget to recognize all the little things that make our days worth living.
Yesterday, I chatted with a resident who was having trouble finding something to celebrate. With a deceased father and an absent mother, she was feeling lost and struggling to find joy in her life. As a lucky girl with two healthy parents, I couldn't do much comforting, so I tried another technique. I asked her what her goals were and what she wanted to do someday. Her only desire is to be reunited with her family. Recognizing how hard it would be to divert her attention, we tried to think of some little things that made her happy, things she could look forward to. They're not miracles, but seeing that cute boy at school or chatting with Miss Jerrica helped her crack a smile that had disappeared for a while. We celebrate the big things, but it's the little things that make each day worth living.
At the end of our service last Thursday, we sang a classic This is the day that the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it! Sometimes, we miss the little things, like the bird chirping outside the window, the ray of sunlight shining through the clouds, or that stranger that smiles just because. What we should never fail to miss is that every day is a day that was created and bestowed on us by God. That is a reason to rejoice, to celebrate.
Blair Holliday, a member of the Duke football team suffered a serious head injury this summer from a wakeboarding accident that ended his football career. He has shared how thankful he is to be alive and standing on the sidelines, despite the amount of physical therapy in his future. To support his family, the student body have been buying tanks that say Every Day is a Holliday and raising funds for his medical bills. What some may not realize is the message that this shirt sends.
The word holiday comes from holy day. There is so much truth to those shirts, despite the frat star neon lettering. Every day is holy- a day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in that holy day, or "holiday" if you prefer.
Yesterday, I chatted with a resident who was having trouble finding something to celebrate. With a deceased father and an absent mother, she was feeling lost and struggling to find joy in her life. As a lucky girl with two healthy parents, I couldn't do much comforting, so I tried another technique. I asked her what her goals were and what she wanted to do someday. Her only desire is to be reunited with her family. Recognizing how hard it would be to divert her attention, we tried to think of some little things that made her happy, things she could look forward to. They're not miracles, but seeing that cute boy at school or chatting with Miss Jerrica helped her crack a smile that had disappeared for a while. We celebrate the big things, but it's the little things that make each day worth living.
At the end of our service last Thursday, we sang a classic This is the day that the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it! Sometimes, we miss the little things, like the bird chirping outside the window, the ray of sunlight shining through the clouds, or that stranger that smiles just because. What we should never fail to miss is that every day is a day that was created and bestowed on us by God. That is a reason to rejoice, to celebrate.
Blair Holliday, a member of the Duke football team suffered a serious head injury this summer from a wakeboarding accident that ended his football career. He has shared how thankful he is to be alive and standing on the sidelines, despite the amount of physical therapy in his future. To support his family, the student body have been buying tanks that say Every Day is a Holliday and raising funds for his medical bills. What some may not realize is the message that this shirt sends.
The word holiday comes from holy day. There is so much truth to those shirts, despite the frat star neon lettering. Every day is holy- a day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in that holy day, or "holiday" if you prefer.
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