Traditions

I am not very sentimental. I do, however, love traditions.  If it is one thing I'll commit to, besides church on Sundays, it is participating in annual traditions. This week we attended an annual, amazing Thanksgiving feast held by our dear friends, whom also homeschool.  We've participated in this gathering for 7 years.  I thnk that's pretty impressive for a group of homeschool moms.  To stop schooling, prepare dishes, create games, dress our kids up (& ourselves!) to gather for a few hours in the middle of the week.  While it sounds, and maybe looks exhausting, it's one more sweet memory to add to our bank.  God says to store up treasures in heaven, for where our treasure is our heart will be also.  It is good to create sweet traditions that draw all of us closer together.  Our heart can take our friends with us to heaven!  That is something worth setting aside time for, don't you think?

Another thing that I love about traditions, while I'm on the topic, is that they are so seasonal.  I've been listening to a sermon series on the book of Ecclesiastes by Marc Driscoll.  As he discusses the famous chapter 3 "There is a season for every activity under heaven", I can't help but think "There's really a season for EVERYTHING in our lives! Thank GOD for that!"  Who wants to be crying all of the time?  Who wants to dance ALL of the time?  There's respite when the seasons change.  When it technically becomes fall, but it still feels like summer because of where we live, I grow weary and anxious.  Bring the cool weather on please!  There's also respite when we shift into different seasons of our life.  As we move from being single to being married.  As we move from school to the work force.  As we move from mom of toddlers to tweens.  Well, maybe not tweens, but you get my point! While God never changes, we humans need change!  We thrive on change.  Spiritually, physically, mentally...on all levels.  Let's embrace the change of the seasons and the traditions that come with them.  Create traditions for your family, and if you have them already, commit to carrying them out each year.