Last week I celebrated my birthday (51, and yes, I had a lovely day with friends, thank you for asking). That is the key word for me - “celebrating”. I have always loved my birthday. I never work on my birthday unless I absolutely have to. I don’t need to have a big fuss made or even a cake. Even last week, when I knew that there would not be a pile of presents waiting for me, I still had that childish delight of waking up and remembering “It’s my birthday!” I just enjoy having a day to relish being me and to just do what I would like to do. I understand that for some people, a birthday may be a poignant or difficult time. Some people don’t like to be reminded that they are getting older and perhaps it is hard to celebrate when life is difficult, sad or lonely.
However, the truth remains that each and every one of us currently exists. We live and breathe and walk through the world. God gave us life and breath. Whether we choose to acknowledge that on our birthday or on any other day of our choosing is up to us. How would it be then to have a day when we just relish in the fact that God made us and loves us? How would it be to sit and acknowledge all the things that make us unique and special? Many of us spend time focussing on our faults, mistakes and the things we struggle with. What about having a day when we just go through the things that we are good at, enjoy doing, make us happy etc.
I once went to a prayer session that focussed on the body. We were guided in prayer as we started at our toes and prayerfully considered each part of our body. As someone who has always been very self conscious of my body weight, I was not looking forward to this at all. However, as my hands blessed different aspects of my physique, I began to realise that I quite like different bits of my body. For example, my feet and hands are tiny, but I like the way they look. They do their job well and I am glad I have them.
It is easy to overlook what qualities we have and who we are. Culturally, we are not encouraged to even talk about our good qualities, as this is seen as boastfulness or bigheadedness. However God made us in God’s image. It is not boastful for me to say I have blue eyes. It is just a fact. It is not arrogant to say I can write. It too is a fact. Pick a day this week to celebrate who you are – a much loved child of God.
God bless
Cecilia
However, the truth remains that each and every one of us currently exists. We live and breathe and walk through the world. God gave us life and breath. Whether we choose to acknowledge that on our birthday or on any other day of our choosing is up to us. How would it be then to have a day when we just relish in the fact that God made us and loves us? How would it be to sit and acknowledge all the things that make us unique and special? Many of us spend time focussing on our faults, mistakes and the things we struggle with. What about having a day when we just go through the things that we are good at, enjoy doing, make us happy etc.
I once went to a prayer session that focussed on the body. We were guided in prayer as we started at our toes and prayerfully considered each part of our body. As someone who has always been very self conscious of my body weight, I was not looking forward to this at all. However, as my hands blessed different aspects of my physique, I began to realise that I quite like different bits of my body. For example, my feet and hands are tiny, but I like the way they look. They do their job well and I am glad I have them.
It is easy to overlook what qualities we have and who we are. Culturally, we are not encouraged to even talk about our good qualities, as this is seen as boastfulness or bigheadedness. However God made us in God’s image. It is not boastful for me to say I have blue eyes. It is just a fact. It is not arrogant to say I can write. It too is a fact. Pick a day this week to celebrate who you are – a much loved child of God.
God bless
Cecilia
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