WORSHIP

Pastor's Message

Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

-1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

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I recently had a conversation with my therapist Maddie about the competing demands of life and my propensity to feel overwhelmed by it and honestly to feel pretty grumpy about it. You probably know the feeling. I HAVE to go here, I HAVE to go there, then do this, then that, JUMP in the shower, RUN to the store, GRAB a quick bite to eat. We know we should slow down, and maybe sometimes that’s possible. Yet, our busy lives don’t always allow for pauses in particularly hectic seasons.

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            Maddie acknowledged this and suggested a subtle reframing. Instead of saying “I have to do…” instead say “I get to do…”. In moment that makes you grumpy and frustrated or overwhelmed there is an opportunity to think about it differently. You have an expensive house to heat? You also GET to live in a house and one that has heat. You have so many errands to run? You GET to enjoy the benefits of your own transportation and resources to provide for yourself. As I said it’s small, but it can take the edge off the negativity and the grumpy resentful feedback loop.

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            This isn’t to say you can’t or shouldn’t feel overwhelmed, frustrated, exhausted or resentful. Those are real feelings that can’t simply be brushed aside by a clever word trick or new age mantra. However, it can contextualize your situation and right size your frustration and perhaps make it more bearable. We can’t always choose our circumstances, but we can choose how we think about it and how we respond.

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            As we enter the final month of the Fall season and look toward Thanksgiving, I think this sort of frame is incredibly useful in a world that feels like it’s spinning out of control. Despite all the things I HAVE to do or think about, what is it that I GET to do or cherish? I HAVE to put a meal together for my family, but I also GET to share in the abundance of food and relations present in my life. It can be a tall order to give thanks in all circumstances as Paul urges in the passage above. But he’s not naïve, thinking there is nothing to give us real cause for hopelessness or despair. Rather, his call is to reframe, to make sure that we are just as clear eyed about God’s promises and abundance as we are about the difficulties that lie before us. We HAVE to do or endure many things in our lives, but we also GET to do and experience many wonderful things as well, sometimes in the very same moment. Such is the complexity of life and a life lived in gratitude. Thanks be to God for all those things I GET to do!

As Ever in Christ,

Pastor CJ