One of the things that I have found really helpful in recovering from the trauma (and that’s not an understatement) of my cancer experience has been to use a “faith mantra”. Each day I say certain things to myself to enable me to stay strong and positive.
Part of this mantra is the phrase “Every Day is a Beautiful Day”. I was finding that some days I was looking forward to my day with anticipation and other days I was not. However, I then had a moment of realisation – actually every day is a day to look forward to, because every day is filled with beautiful things. They are there to be seen and appreciated if one has eyes and a heart to notice. They may often be quite small things; a lovely view, the taste of a cup of coffee, a moment of shared laughter, but cumulatively making the day one to savour and enjoy.
This means that whatever challenges I may face on a given day I can always say “Today is a beautiful Day”. This made me also think of the song “It’s a Beautiful Day” by U2, and I realised that the lyrics of this song are actually expressing exactly the same thing as my mantra. It’s a song about defying the sadness, and seeing the beauty that is there:
See the Bedouin fires at night
See the oil fields at first light
And see the bird with a leaf in her mouth
After the flood all the colours came out
This attitude has made me so much more appreciative of God’s provision and blessings and has given me renewed strength.
As we approach Christmas, I am aware that some find this season a really difficult time of the year. If this is your experience, then don’t force yourself to enjoy it, but rather just look for the beautiful things in each day, and focus on those, like the words of a familiar carol, or the smell of a warmed mince pie, and of course the wonder of the Christ of God come as a baby laid in a manger, and the hope He brings to us.
Life is not always easy, but God has given us so much we can appreciate, and every day is a beautiful day.
“It’s a beautiful day. Don’t let it get away.” U2
Mark Wickenden, Minister
Christmas 2017