This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it. Psalm 118:24 ESV
I don’t know about you, but when I hear the word celebrate, I immediately think of a party. After all, one of the definitions of the word celebrate is to “acknowledge (a significant or happy day or event) with a social gathering or enjoyable activity”.
It’s common for us to celebrate the good things in life and everyone does it. But what if we learned to celebrate all the time, even when things aren’t going the way we want them to?
Disappointments, rejection, loss, and every little bad thing in our lives can cause us to lose our celebration. But friend, I have awesome news! God is above it all! He is bigger than all the little things combined, and He is so good.
When we choose to focus on those little things, celebration is nearly impossible. But when we focus on God we are never without something to celebrate. And we are given a newfound perspective to see all the good in our lives. We are able to celebrate every little win with Jesus.
Another definition of the word celebrate is to “honor and praise publicly”. I’ve been thinking about this definition a lot lately because it doesn’t have any conditions. It doesn’t say to only celebrate when things are great and God is answering every prayer. It simply says to honor and praise Him publicly.
This past week I really struggled with celebration. I took my eyes off of Jesus and started focusing on all the little things instead. It was extremely difficult to keep up a celebratory attitude because every little disappointment was able to affect me.
I decided that I didn’t like the way I was feeling or even acting, but I couldn’t figure out ways to celebrate. I knew that I couldn’t do it on my own, so I turned to Jesus. I spent time in God’s Word reflecting on the week. It was then that I realized I had shifted my focus. I was able to readjust and choose to keep my eyes on Jesus.
Almost immediately, I could see a change in my mood and attitude. My perspective changed drastically in regard to all the little things I was letting affect me. I was also able to see all the little wins I had gained throughout the week, which allowed me to start celebrating them.
I could honor and praise Him through my daily struggles; publicly and without conditions. I could celebrate! And friend, you can too!