The Blessing of Ordinary Moments

At the beginning of the lockdown, I started a list of all the small, daily blessings this new world order was bestowing on our family. I'm glad I did because some of the early ones—like taking long walks with one child at a time—are a distant memory already. Others—like spending more time at the dinner table—have become the new normal.

The greatest gift for me has been something we talked about on the podcast this week: finding joy in the very ordinary moments of each day. Because right now pretty much all moments are ordinary. Many of you asked about the quote I shared about spontaneous joy from Rolheiser's The Holy Longing so I'll add it here:

"Imagine yourself on some ordinary weekday, walking to your car, standing at a bus stop, cooking a meal, sitting at your desk, or doing anything else that is quite ordinary. Suddenly, for no tangible reason, you fill with a sense of the goodness and beauty and joy of just living. You feel your own life...and you spontaneously fill with the exclamation: 'God it feels great to be alive!'"

Those moments may be fewer and further between right now, when the world seems to have come unhinged. But true joy comes from the Holy Spirit; it has very little to do with whatever circumstances we find ourselves in. Give thanks today for even the little things, and watch Jesus' promise come true: "I have told you these things so that my joy may be in you, and your joy may be complete" (John 15:11).