By Carrie Kroll
My friend and I traveled to Indiana for a conference this summer. Ready for dinner, we checked into our hotel, dropped our bags, and headed out to find a nearby restaurant. We left the hotel, walked past a bench where a statue of Johnny Appleseed sat, then walked past a baseball park. We quickly found a suitable restaurant for the evening’s meal. My Apple Watch barely started logging my steps, as all these sites were on two short blocks! On our way back to the hotel after dinner, we lingered in front of the baseball stadium, partly to soak in the lovely summer weather and partly to satisfy our curiosity about the park, Parkview Field.
We learned that Fort Wayne’s minor league team, the TinCaps, calls Parkview Field home. We watched the many baseball fans on the other side of the gate enjoy the evening as they grabbed snacks and cheered on their team. The evening felt relaxed—quite different from the noise, traffic, and crowds when going to a Braves game!
We had a long day planned for the next day, so we headed to our room, but before either of us could drift off to sleep, noises outside the hotel startled us. Fireworks! But, not like the fireworks my neighbors at home habitually set off near July, I’m not even sure they resembled the ones our cities set off on holidays. No, these fireworks exploded one on top of the other and continued for a very long (sleepless) time. The intensity and fervor of the celebration was remarkable. We assumed that the baseball team was celebrating a big win and asked about it the next morning.
Would you believe that the TinCaps have a fireworks celebration on scheduled nights, approximately three per week during the playing season? The next night of fireworks included the addition of loud, racing cars outside the hotel. It was a party – I guess that’s how it’s done on the weekend! What struck me about the city’s celebration of its beloved team, win or lose. Whether the fans are delighted or depressed by the outcome, they celebrate.
Celebration despite the outcome. As believers, do we do this in our lives? Do we celebrate God’s goodness, faithfulness, mercy, love, and grace regardless of the current outcomes in our lives? Are we able to see and celebrate His work in our lives and our amazing salvation regardless of our circumstances? Certainly, on Sundays, we worship God, whatever we are facing. Sometimes, it’s with smiles on our faces, sometimes with tears streaming down our cheeks. What about the rest of the week?
Synonyms for the word “celebrate” include praise, bless, extol, worship, exalt, glorify, and magnify. Sound familiar? We may recognize that these words are often used to describe the attitudes and actions of God’s people toward Him. A few examples (bold added) include:
- “I will extol you, my God and King, and bless your name forever. Every day I will bless you and praise your name forever and ever. Great is the Lord and greatly to be praised, and his greatness is unsearchable.” (Psalm 145:1-3 NKJV)
- “Praise the LORD, all nations! Extol him, all peoples! For great is his steadfast love toward us, and the faithfulness of the LORD endures forever. Praise the LORD!” (Psalm 117:1-2 ESV)
- “Ascribe to the LORD the glory due his name; worship the LORD in the splendor of holiness.” (Psalm 29:2 ESV)
- “All the nations you have made shall come and worship before you, O Lord, and shall glorify your name.” (Psalm 86:9 ESV)
- “Oh, magnify the LORD with me, and let us exalt his name together!” (Psalm 34:3 ESV)
- “I will praise the name of God with a song; I will magnify him with thanksgiving.” (Psalm 69:30)
If we read the Bible and live honestly in this broken world, we know that God’s people also lament and weep, groan and cry out, plead and ask for help. We find these attitudes and actions throughout the Psalms, as well as the entirety of the Word. Can we hold both/and at the same time? Can we make space in ourselves and in prayer for both adoration and tears, both praise and pleading, both worship and lament?
Several years ago, confusion, chaos, and loss took my family hostage. I felt despair and anger so deeply that I could not pray, I could not do both/and. In those dark times, praise could not find its way to reside in my heart or be on my lips. I am thankful in those times that God continued to hold me. He never let me go. I am grateful for faithful friends who lifted my needs in prayer when I was unable to speak to God. I know that Jesus and the Spirit interceded for me even when (especially when) I couldn’t speak, couldn’t pray. At the time, I was committed to a leadership role in a weekly Bible study that kept me in the Word and covered in corporate prayer. The community of believing women supported me with love and patience. Slowly, my heart softened, and my feet moved back toward God, to celebrate Him who He is and what He does.
I am learning to practice celebrating God despite outcomes. The more I practice, the more quickly my heart finds praise and worship. Circumstances and situations may not change, but I can choose to fix my eyes on the Lord. It is helpful to know that if I can’t find the words, I can open the Word and find help there. It is important to know that I can hold both/and. I do not have to pretend to be okay when my world is crumbling, but I can find a reason to celebrate Him even when things are impossibly difficult.
In Colossians, the Apostle Paul writes, “He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins” (Colossians 1:13-14). Isn’t that enough to justify a fireworks display?! This truth alone deserves a celebration that is grander, louder, longer, and fuller than Fort Wayne’s display of gratitude for the TinCaps.
In her song, If You Never, Christy Nockels sings to Jesus, “If You never did another thing for me, it would always be enough that You set me free, always be enough that You gave Your life…” What a simple, yet wondrous, truth. We want, of course, so much more in life. We desire good outcomes, but could the truth of our deliverance be enough, even if for just a moment? Might we choose to practice celebration moment by moment?
My conference-going friend and I memorize psalms together. This practice keeps us accountable to each other and gives us words and truths to pray when we meet weekly by phone to pray. It also puts God’s truth in my mind and heart. Truth that can rise to the surface when lies threaten to overcome me or my heart has turned astray. Recently, we memorized Psalms 27 and 95. Psalm 103 is in progress.
- When fear invades my heart, I hear: “The LORD is the stronghold of my life…. I will be confident.” (Psalm 27:1, 3 NRSV)
- When I am impatient and restless, my heart instructs: “Wait for the LORD; be strong and let your heart take courage; wait for the LORD!” (Psalm 27:14 NRSV).
- When I feel unseen, the Spirit reminds me that the great king above all gods is my God. He cares for me and my family with the concern of a Shepherd. “We are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of His hand.” (Psalm 95:3,7 NRSV)
- When I lack gratitude, I remember to “not harden my heart” (Psalm 95:8 NRSV)
- When pride, idolatry, or discontent rises in me, my heart cries “Bless the LORD, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless his holy name.” (Psalm 103:1 NRSV).
Paul writes. Christy sings. What joyful noise, what song of praise, can we make to and about our great God?
The fans of the TinCaps make a loud and raucous celebration for their team because they highly value them. Are we willing to practice celebrating God? We celebrate Him despite outcomes, win or lose, because the Lord, the salvation that He has secured for us, and our promised forever is enough.
