Jump directly to the Content

Happy Holy Days

God commands us to celebrate&—even when times are tough

It's November. The holidays are coming we tell each other, sometimes with a wild, fearful look in our eyes. But think about that word—holidays. Holy days. Its etymology is far removed from its current stress-inducing connotation, but I want you to consider something. Can your holidays become holy days?

I love Thanksgiving. It's a truly American holiday and one that has, perhaps because of its name, retained at least some of its original meaning and purpose. Of course, I'm the kind of person who shows love by cooking, so it's a holiday made for me. I'm already perusing glossy magazines, figuring out which recipes I want to try.

But our national holiday is not just about entertaining or eating. It is a day, as the name implies, for giving thanks. It's national gratitude day and I, for one, am planning to be as grateful as possible even though this has been, in many ways, a challenging year. We often travel to see family on the west coast for Thanksgiving, but because finances are tight ...

March
Support Our Work

Subscribe to CT for less than $4.25/month

Homepage Subscription Panel

Read These Next

Related
Maximizing the Children's Sermon
Maximizing the Children's Sermon
What do you do with little tykes once they're assembled at the front of the church?
From the Magazine
Empty Streets to the Empty Grave
Empty Streets to the Empty Grave
While reporting in Israel, photographer Michael Winters captures an unusually vacant experience at the Church of the Holy Sepulcher.
Editor's Pick
What Christians Miss When They Dismiss Imagination
What Christians Miss When They Dismiss Imagination
Understanding God and our world needs more than bare reason and experience.
close