How to Celebrate...June
How to Celebrate …
June
June is the month of gardens … of weddings … and of graduations.
June is 30 glorious, incomparable days of strawberries and asparagus … of robins flying and bees buzzing … of popsicles and bicycles.
June.
Listen well … and nearly every day during the month of June you will hear a child giggling at the summer that lies ahead … a mother crying to the stains of “Pomp and Circumstance” … and a bride gushing over the groom that awaits her at the altar.
June is the halfway point in yet another trip around the sun.
June is a month of beginnings and endings … of precious memories and sweet expectation … of contentment and tears.
June seems like an appropriate month to linger over the past and yet to gaze hopefully at the future.
As I contemplate another month of June whose days I will gently catalogue on yet another page of the scrapbook of my heart … I am reminded of years gone by and of the lovely traditions that have enabled me to build a life of uncompromised joy.
May I share some of those traditions with you today?
They might seem like simple habits … or even shallow obsessions … at first consideration … but let me assure you that often it is the little things in life that bring great joy.
I believe that it is a great thing to discover joy in the simple things.
You already know how vital it is for me to stay in the Word every day … and how priceless my times of personal worship are in pursuing a lifestyle of joy.
You are surely aware of my commitment to praying for others … and to living a lifestyle of lavish generosity … as I continue on my journey to joy.
“But when Christ is at the center, when dishes, laundry, work, is my song of thanks to Him, joy rains!” – Ann Voskamp
However, there are other delicious patterns of living that have also added to my bucket of joy. You might assess them as “Carol’s Quirks” but to me they are rich … and meaningful … and life-giving!
First of all, I keep a fragrant candle burning at all times in my modest home.
The candles that I use are often seasonal.
I love knowing that my home will always have an aroma that ushers in peace!
In the spring it is a lilac-scented candle or one that is labeled “Fresh Cut Roses.
During the months of June, July and August, I just adore a beachy-scented candle! I can almost hear the roar of the waves and feel the sand beneath my toes!
When the leaves begin to turn colors and an early morning frost covers my grass, I then enjoy the candles that promote the smell of apples, cinnamons and pumpkin pie!
On the evening of Thanksgiving, I joyfully light my Christmas candles throughout my home. Oh! Don’t you just love the smell of evergreen, mistletoe and peppermint?
When my calendar turns to the month of January, I fill the months of winter with either the fragrance of clean linen or of one that is aptly named, “Home Sweet Home”.
God gave us our five senses to enjoy! I love making sure that the aroma of my home is a reason to participate in the joy of the Lord!
“You are passionate for righteousness, and you hate lawlessness.
This is why God, your God, crowns you with bliss above your fellow kings.
He has anointed you, more than any other, with his oil of fervent joy, the very fragrance of heaven’s gladness.”
– Psalm 45:7 - TPT
I am a farmer’s daughter who has loved a bouquet of freshly cut flowers even before I could spell the word “f-l-o-w-e-r”!
I remember so well the bachelor button’s that giggled in my aunt’s garden … and the vibrant zinnia’s that our neighbor so generously shared with us … and the forget-me-nots that graced my grandmother’s stone sidewalk … and the towering, enthusiastic sunflowers that my dad planted annually in the family garden.
I guess that you could say I have never met a flower that I didn’t like!
Although I can’t always afford it … when I am able to make room for it in my weekly budget … I indulge in buying a bouquet of flowers at the grocery store.
There is something about a freshly arranged group of flowers … in my grandmother’s vase … sitting in the middle of my kitchen table that exclaims, “Joy lives here!”
In the winter months … it is fresh evergreen sprinkled with holly berries.
In the summer … it is invariably daisies or peonies.
In the spring … it is tulips or hyacinth.
And in the fall … red roses will do!
“Flowers can’t solve all problems ~ but they’re a great start!”
Music can turn a gray day into a holiday … a slump into a skip … and an ache into enthusiasm.
Believe me … I know.
As you all know by now, the soundtrack of my life has been filled to overflowing with worship music of all kinds and from all decades.
How I love listening to the hymns of faith that I grew up on!
“A mighty fortress is our God! A bulwark never failing!”
How I love singing along with the worship choruses of my teen-age years!
“It only takes a spark to get a fire going!
And soon all those around, will warm up in its glowing
That’s how it is with God’s love, once you’ve experienced it;
You want to sing, it’s fresh like spring, you want to pass it on.”
How I love being strengthened – even today - by the songs that I sang during my college years with the generation that was destined to change the world for the Kingdom of Christ!
“Oh, welcome all ye noble saints of old,
Who know before our very eyes unfold,
The wonders all so long ago foretold,
God and man at table are sat down.”
How I love being reminded of the dear children’s praise songs that I sang with all 5 of my children!
“Ain’t it grand to be a Christian, ain’t it grand?!”
And now, how I love participating in the worship movement that is filling the hearts of Christendom.
“All my life You have been faithful,
All my life You have been so, so good!
With every breath that I am able
Oh, I will sing of the goodness of God.”
Joy is ushered into a home and into a life where the praise of God are a priority!
“Lord, just singing about You makes me strong!
So I’ll keep shouting for joy to Jacob’s God, my Champion!” – Psalm 81:1 - TPT
I have found in my decades of pursuing a lifestyle of inexpressible joy, that there are other genres of music that are apt to put a spring in my step and a smile on my face.
During July … I listen to patriotic tunes!
“You’re a Grand Old Flag, You’re a high-flying flag!”
During February … I listen to the love songs of the ages.
“I’ll be seeing you in all the old familiar places.”
During March and April … I adore listening to Broadway show tunes and musical soundtracks. Who doesn’t love, “My Favorite Things” … “Everything’s Coming Up Roses” … and “Seize the Day”!
During June … I love listening to oldies. I do! I’ll admit it! I love listening to the songs that my parents listened to in the 1940’s and 1950’s. I love listening to the music of the 1960’s and early 1970’s. It makes me smile … it reminds me of people and events in my younger years … and it makes me remember my mom and dad dancing together in our living room.
“I’ll be loving you … always.
With a heart that’s true … always.”
My friend … fill your heart and your home with music! You will never regret it!
When depression or discouragement comes knocking on the door of my heart, I know that it is time to take a walk.
Winter … spring … summer … or fall … creation is my friend!
I go for a brisk walk on an autumn morning and my soul is filled with the quiet glory of God.
I meander through snow-covered sidewalks and find contentment in the chilly air and in the brisk breeze of winter.
I sweat as I go up hills and down under the hot sunshine of summer and as I sweat … the malaise disappears as well.
And in the spring … the miraculous, unmatchable days of spring … the birds cheer me on my way and the early flowers smile as I pause to look their direction.
God has given creation to us, His dear children, to joyfully splash in … to cheerfully wallow in … and to be totally amazed by!
All of creation shouts His Name and my heart will shout His name even louder!
There is no rock that will out-shout this girl!
“God’s splendor is a tale that is told,
written in the stars.
Space itself speaks his story
through the marvels of the heavens.
His truth is on tour in the starry vault of the sky,
showing his skill in creation’s craftsmanship.” – Psalm 19:1 - TPT
If you need some extra joy this month of June … why don’t you light a candle … buy some flowers … sing a song … and go for a walk?!
Simple joys can become holy moments in an otherwise ordinary day.