Celebrate Me Home - A 3-Day Devotional by CAINSýnishorn

Celebrate Me Home: Day 3

Logan Cain

Celebrate. In the Bible, the word celebrate is used for everything ranging from singing and proclaiming to keeping the sabbath. From stringed instruments and feasting to burials and honor. To celebrate can, and does, mean so many things. But the one I want to focus on is this: in the Hebrew-Aramaic it is “ חָגַג†” It’s pronounced “cha-gag” and it means “to make a pilgrimage.” Many times, God’s people were asked to keep and honor traditions, often with a feast or a celebration. But sometimes that included recreating a journey that their ancestors traveled, ending in that feast or celebration. It wasn’t just the party - the walk was included.

You see, in my mind, when I think celebration, I think “finish line.” And I believe that absolutely can be true. But when God thinks about celebrating - He isn’t just celebrating that you’ve crossed the finish line, He is celebrating every single step you took on the journey to get there.

I don’t know about you, but this year was certainly the marathon of all marathons. It would be no stretch of the imagination to say we’re looking at the end of this year like the most enticing finish line we’ve ever seen. But, I believe that God is wanting us to stop and celebrate. And He’s not wanting us to celebrate that it’s over - He wants us to celebrate and remember how He brought us through. Think about that. Instead of celebrating just that you have made it, take a moment and just reflect on each little victory that collectively made this year such a miracle. Quickly, our hearts are transformed and transported into a place of even more thankfulness. Instead of praising God for finishing one marathon, we’re thanking Him for all 26.2 miles. To take it a little further, now we’re thanking Him for every step we ran in every mile. Even further, we’re thanking Him for every inch of every foot of every yard of every mile of the whole event! When we’re praising Him for the journey - we are infinitely more thankful than we are when we are praising Him for the finish line.

Prayer:

Father we thank you for walking with us all along the way, and that you’ve never asked us to go through this life alone. That this season, as different as it might look and feel, I choose to CELEBRATE every single thing that You’ve done in my life this year. If at first there’s nothing obvious to celebrate - I will continue to break the journey down into even smaller pieces until I find even the smallest victory. And I want to remember that the journey is as much a part of the celebration as the party at the end. We give you all the Glory and honor and praise.