Faithbase

Hey Faith-Base, happy Sunday. I hope it is a great day of worship for you. I wanted to take a minute and share a thought, maybe a reflection, maybe it could be an inspiration to you. Our daughter, who is 13, had her opening night for White Christmas. She's in the musical White Christmas in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, which is where we live. And number one, it was beyond captivating. This is her 19th show, this is what she does. She's a child actor and is on stage. But just a phenomenal show about kindness and friendship and the joy of celebrating love. And I was just so moved by the performance, I started thinking about it and I just saw profound messages that were hidden within that I thought echoed and served as a word of encouragement to us in our faith journey. If you know the movie, if you know the musical, then you know in White Christmas we witness the transformational power of love and friendship. And it's really about the beauty of coming together to create something extraordinary. It is a show that reminds us that life is not just about challenge and struggle, right? We face a lot of those, but life is about those moments of joy and laughter and of shared experiences. And it's a show that encourages us to embrace the spirit of celebration and to cherish, you know, simple pleasures and to find happiness in the company of loved ones. And so I thought, that's a good message. We're in a thankful holiday season and we need to cultivate and continue to work on cultivating a heart of gratitude because gratitude is what brings us joy and allows us to find delight in everyday blessings that are all around us. And so as you think about that, as we think about those uplifting messages from White Christmas, one of my thoughts was to reflect on the words of Ecclesiastes chapter 12, chapter 3, verses 12 and 13. I know there is nothing better for people than to be happy and do good while they live. That each of them may eat and drink and find satisfaction in their toil. This is the gift of God. It's a verse that reminds us that God delights in our happiness and he calls us to find joy in every aspect of our lives, just as the characters in the show found fulfillment in acts of kindness and celebrating love. I think the same is true for you and I. We too can experience the richness of life by embracing a spirit of gratitude and spreading joy to those that are around us. So as I wrap this video up, but as we journey through this holiday season, be inspired not just by White Christmas, be inspired by the message of God, the message of love, the message of friendship, the message of celebration that God has placed in our hearts. May we be reminded to cherish moments of joy and laughter, to embrace the warmth of friendship and find, you know, delight in the simple pleasures that find their way into our life. May we extend kindness and love to those around us and may our actions be a reflection of joy and gratitude. White Christmas didn't invent that, God did, but sometimes it takes an outward show to remind us of that so that we can find and rediscover that inspiration. I hope you find it today. I hope you have a renewed sense of gratitude and purpose as we think about just our life and our faith journey with God. May your day today, may your week coming up be filled with love and laughter and joy and the celebration of life's blessings. Be great, be blessed. We'll see you next time.