Naming Favorite Things

First thing this morning, as I sat down to my laptop and habitually flipped on the Channel 69 website to check on local news of The Pestilence, I found the most surprising headline: “Sunrise over Allentown.” From atop the PPL building, our region’s skyscraper, a stationary camera was livestreaming the event. The sight filled me with gladness–a commodity that is almost as hard to come by these days as antibacterial wipes. I was grateful for the reminder that the sun  does  come up without fail, and its light covers us all indiscriminately. Hope dawns with the arrival of every new day.

We have a joke in my family. My husband and sons know that I avoid watching movies about war. They tease me about The Sound of Music being my favorite “war movie” because its tension is built around the VonTrapp family’s actions to stay out of the grip of evil—the Nazis.

Spoiler alert: If you haven’t seen the story on film or on stage, skip the next paragraph.

At the end of The Sound of Music , as the VonTrapp family flees their homeland with the Nazis close behind, they hide behind tombstones in the graveyard of the abbey. (The scene still sends chills up my spine even though I’ve seen the show at least 30 times.) At the height of the suspense, the youngest daughter in the family whispers, “Would it help if we sang about our favorite things?” Of course, in that particular situation, bursting into song was not a workable solution! But as she had learned earlier in the movie, in a moment of great anxiety (a thunder storm), an effective coping mechanism is naming the things that evoke joy. Raindrops on roses. Whiskers on kittens. Bright copper kettles. Warm woolen mittens. Brown paper packages tied up with string….

Today, when the weight of the shuttered world is just too much, let’s name the things for which we are grateful. Let’s make lists. Mine would include: the daffodils I can see blooming in the yard; the chocolate-chip-coconut-banana-bread I had time to bake; opportunities to talk by phone with my loved ones; a comfortable home with a repaired roof and an efficiently working furnace; a loving husband and a supportive community; a comfy sweatshirt; and, of course, the sunrise. What’s on your list?

These favorite things you’re listing? These become the prayers of gratitude we lift to God. Even in times that bring out fretfulness and apprehension, we remain blessed in countless ways. Naming our blessings helps to put our worries in better perspective, and couldn’t we all use that right now?

Always Hopeful,

Pastor Chris