Enjoy the Present Season

Wellness is a topic we hear about frequently. At work we are actually taking the eight dimensions of wellness, and looking at a separate component each month. As I was putting up Christmas decorations last weekend and going through all of the emotions involved there, I was reminded of the importance of being present which is a piece of emotional wellness.

We know the importance of being present. Psalm 118:24 tells us “This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.” There is a need to focus on the here and now and there are many tools that can help us do that such a journaling, meditation…. What I want to write about instead of the act of being present is what being present is NOT.

Being present is NOT dwelling on the past or worrying about the future. This was particularly hard for me this year as I was decorating. Every ornament I pulled out of the box, every item that I sat on a shelf, every stocking that I hung, brought back a memory tied to a Christmas of the past. Christmases with my grandma and all of my cousins packing around the “kids” table out in the back washroom. Christmases when my children were at home and helped me decorate the tree. The list and memories go on and on causing me to not be satisfied with what Christmas looks like now, this year, because it doesn’t look like what it used to.

For me, spending time thinking about the past Christmases brings fond memories that I deeply miss and wish I could recreate. For others, when you are dwelling on the past, you may be experiencing thoughts of regret. Maybe it is regret over things you said or did. Maybe Christmases in your past bring up memories of deep hurt. As you continue to roll through these memories and thoughts on repeat, you recreate anger, hurt, or all the feelings of the past that keep you from enjoying your today.

Christmas is a special season. Not only a season to celebrate with family, but also a season to give special recognition to the fact that God sent his son to earth to die on the cross so that we can be redeemed and be forgiven of our sins.

Whether memories are joyful or painful, we cannot let our minds stay in the past. You cannot focus on the present, when you are reliving the past. The same is true if you are worried about what next year will look like. Thinking about what could have been or what might have been doesn’t create joy or honor what God desires for us. We have to be present with what is right now. While my heart aches for the Christmases of the past, I choose to live and enjoy the Christmases of today.

As your mind wonders from the present, bring it back into focus by giving praise to God for the gift he gave us. Colossians 3:2, “Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on the earth.” Get busy living and quit using all of your thought time to dwell on the past or worry about the future. Use that energy to make this year special and to make a difference for God this season.

If you’re thoughts this season are heavier than in the past or there is a sadness you cannot shake, do not be too ashamed to seek help. If you just need a reminder to focus your thoughts on the good of today, read Ecclesiastes 3. Write out Ecclesiastes 3:11 & 12. Put it on your bathroom mirror, put it in your car. Hide it in your heart to remember to enjoy this year’s Christmas season.

“Yet God has made everything beautiful for its own time. He has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God’s work from beginning to end. So I conclude there is nothing better than to be happy and enjoy ourselves as long as we can.” Ecclesiastes 3: 11& 12.