There’s one sentence I will inevitably hear after every single event either of my kids participate in, no matter how big or small: “Can we go get dessert after to celebrate?”
School play? Frozen custard. Ninja competition? Slushies. No cavities at the dentist? Ice cream sundaes (the irony in that one is not lost on me).
If I’m being completely honest, more often than not I’d rather skip the celebration and subsequent sugar rush. Instead, I’d prefer a chat in the car on the way home, avoiding the already later-than-normal bedtime. When I stop and think about it though, I wonder when that hesitancy to celebrate the little things started to fade.
Think about children for a second. How do they react when they’ve lost their first tooth, won a footrace against a friend, or even accurately tossed a balled-up piece of paper into a trash can? They let the world know how excited they are! With no inhibition, they yell, dance, laugh, or just about anything else that expresses their excitement.
Here’s the thing. . . Jesus was called a man of sorrows (Isaiah 53:3), but He was also a man of celebration! Put yourself into the settings of some of the miracles He performed throughout the New Testament. When Simon and his fellow fishermen cast their nets one more time at Jesus’ request after fishing all night with not a single catch, they brought out so many fish from the water that their nets began to break (Luke 5:1-11). Do you think they said a polite “thank you” and went about their day? When He raised the widow’s son from the dead during the funeral procession (Luke 7:11-17), do you think it was a quiet, somber moment? I don’t know about you, but if my son was brought back to life, you’d hear the celebration from a mile away! I have to guess that every time Jesus changed a life through His healing, redemptive power, there was a celebration to follow.
In the Old Testament, we can read of multiple festivals that the Israelites were commanded to observe each year such as Passover, the Feast of Firstfruits, and the Feast of Booths. They were celebrations that not only brought them together as a community, but also served the purpose of continually remembering God’s provision in their lives over the generations. Their celebrations were an intentional practice of remembrance—a reminder of God’s faithfulness as well as a renewal of hope that He would continue to meet their needs if they continued to rely on Him above their own strength.
A sense of joy is often associated with celebrations, and the Bible has plenty to say about joy as well. In Nehemiah 8:10, it says “the joy of the Lord is your strength” (NIV). In Psalm 126:5, it describes joy that comes even amidst suffering: “Those who sow with tears will reap with songs of joy” (NIV).
As adults, particularly in the western world where it’s so easy to slip into self-reliance, we can lose that urge to celebrate the sweet things in our lives. Joy doesn’t come as naturally, as if it’s filtered through other emotional responses or even stifled as a result of life experiences. However, that doesn’t mean we’re destined to stay that way! In Richard J. Foster’s book The Celebration of Discipline, he says, “The decision to set the mind on the higher things of life is an act of the will. That is why celebration is a Discipline. It is not something that falls on our heads. It is the result of a consciously chosen way of thinking and living.” A mindset of celebration is something we can cultivate in our everyday lives. Here are a few places I’d like to start that might spark a habit of celebration in you as well:
Celebrate the small things. Look at the little things that occur in your day as a reason to practice gratitude. Today, I can thank God and celebrate the warm sun on my skin after many rainy days. I can pick my kids up from school and (with lots of dancing and singing in the backseat, I’m sure) praise God together for the kickoff of the weekend together after several weekends of being apart due to work. What are some little things from your week that you can celebrate today?
Celebrate your relationships. God created us to live in community with others, and that is something I can so often forget when I don’t intentionally prioritize my time to reflect the gift that it is. I can celebrate my relationships by asking a friend to coffee and telling them how grateful I am for their presence in my life, or even by journaling or spending time in prayer thanking God for the people that have impacted my life. How can you celebrate one of the relationships God has put in your life?
Celebrate who God is and what He has done. When I take the time to think back over God’s faithfulness in my life, I am overwhelmed by His goodness. Not because everything has been perfect or because I’ve always gotten the resolutions that I’ve wanted, but because He was present with me through all of it. What qualities of God’s character can you celebrate today? In what ways can you see His faithfulness in your own story?
Life’s challenges can make us lose sight of the desire for celebration, but let’s remember the One who entered the world with this joyful proclamation: “But the angel said to them, ‘Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord’” (Luke 2:10–11, NIV). That great joy is one worth celebrating.
—Written by Stephanie Teague. Used by permission from the author.
