Celebrate now
Michelle: Above all, we should always be thankful for life. And what matters most in life are our families, loved ones, friends and the time that we have been given to be together with them. In between busy periods, we should take the time to reflect, to pray, to count our blessings and appreciate what we have in the here and now. God works in mysterious ways. Even if we don’t understand it sometimes, or even most of the time, we need to learn to trust in Him and bask in His great love for us. DJ: We definitely have so much to be thankful for. To have joy in one’s heart despite one’s circumstances and to have faith and trust that all will be well is in itself a blessing. Cliché as it may seem, the richest person is not the one who has the most but the one who needs the least and is grateful for what he has. M: Let’s be grateful for what we have and what we do not have. At the end of the day, the things that matter are not things. Just the other day, I had a lunch date with my 10-year-old son and we talked about many things ranging from the mundane (why his school team is always third place) to the profound (why God allows death to happen). The time spent with him took a big chunk from a busy work day but I know it made a difference not just to him but more importantly to me. I want to celebrate not just the big moments like turning 45 but the small moments like practicing reading with my fiveyear-old daughter. DJ: God gave us 1,440 minutes today. As we count our blessings, let’s use even just a minute of that time to say “thank you.” We have enough. We are enough. Even in times that nothing could be worse, there’s always something to be thankful for. Let’s learn to look for the good in every situation. And if we don’t understand the situation, let’s give ourselves the time to question, to seek answers, to stay silent, to dwell, to cry, to wait and be patient until such time that we see the good or accept the bad. When times are hard, it will be good to remember that you overcame the worst of them in the past and now, those are no longer as difficult as you thought they were. These challenging experiences will be your source of strength and knowledge in overcoming more in the future. Celebrate!