— Midweek Meditations:
thoughts, inspiration and encouragement
from ACF community members —
I’m not much of a fan of self-help books and articles. But recently I was intrigued: my daily “Morning” feed from the New York Times had, as its first short article, “How to Like Yourself More”., (Melissa Kirsch, NYT, June 29, 2024). How odd for such a title to be the headliner. I read on….
Ms. Kirsch differentiates between the practice of gratitude – spending time possibly at the end of the day being aware of all the good things in one’s life – and appreciation, being aware of what good one has done oneself.
The premise was simple: instead of rehashing over and over what we did wrong during the day, we should take time to think back in the evening of all the good we did. Pat ourselves on the shoulder for good deeds, friendly words. Focus on the positive and not the negative.
The author admits that “With gratitude, you think about things outside yourself. You remember that you’re not alone, that there’s more going on in your life than what’s in your head, and this offers perspective. An appreciation practice entails thinking about yourself, but it’s not the opposite of gratitude; it’s a refraction of it. It’s expressing gratitude for oneself, which at first feels conceited, but eventually, for me, has come to seem anything but.”
But it went on with the suggestion that we “pay ahead”, i.e., think about how we will feel about our actions at the end of the day. Will be beat ourselves up for not yielding to that person in line? Yes? Then let them in… Will we regret the kind words, thought but left unspoken? Then spit them out! The idea is to act so that we can later be proud, content with our actions. “I want to make future me proud”. Gosh, what a thought!
Sounds easy enough. But I would go on to say that the presence of God is the key. I am grateful for God accompanying me in the course of the day. For His blessings, but also, if I am aware of it, for His guidance. It is He who nudges me to be good and, in doing so, I can look over my day, not only grateful, but also aware that I acted as He would have me act. I want to make God proud.
The ACF Midweek Meditations
are written by a diverse group of our church members with the intention to seek God’s fingerprints in our lives. They range from somber to humorous and are inspired by all facets of live and faith. Written by ordinary people from all walks of life, they reflect a wide range of Christian backgrounds and spiritualities.
Each week’s text portrays the individual viewpoint of its author. They might not always resonate with everyone, and are not meant to be understood as representing the Anglican Church Freiburg as a whole. Yet, as a church that is aiming to ‘Build a Community of Grace’ we seek to practice learning from and listening to one another.
We pray that these humble ponderings add a small spark of blessing to your week.
Freiburg Anglican Church 