You Are

You are…(fill in the blank). Too often the first things that come to mind are negative such as tired, fat, grumpy or worse. Rarely do I ask someone how they are doing and get a response which lights up a room. It is generic, I’m fine.

Well, FINE means several things depending on how it’s used in a sentence. I can be an adjective meaning of high quality. The word fine can be used to describe the density of something like your hair or sand or beer/wine; to say that it has thinned. None of these definitions explain fine as a way you feel but when someone says they are fine, their body language generally doesn’t say they believe they are high quality; rather they typically present a little thinned!

If you asked the woman in this image how she is doing today, what do you think she’d respond? Fine? I love this image because her joy draws you in. It makes you want more and we certainly need more! She looks so happy doing what is probably a daily or weekly task.

Imagine yourself preparing dinner with this same kind of joy, do you think it would change the flavor of the food or how your family appreciated the meal? Probably not, but it would take the monotony out of the tasks you don’t particularly enjoy doing!

To me, finding this type of joy and maintaining it might be the hardest part. However, I know when I think about God and how much he loves me and how he cherishes me, I can’t help but be filled. It’s scripture verses like this one in the Gospel Acclimation that says, “You are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation; announce the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light” which awaken me from slumber.

Reminding myself that God has chosen me (I’m his beloved daughter) to be a part of his royal priesthood (a special group of believers), a holy nation, gathered with others from throughout history from all over the earth to give praise to God and celebrate all of creation. And as if that isn’t enough to celebrate, I’m reminded that I am baptized Christian and at my baptism, I came out of the darkness of sin and stepped into the light of Christ and it is through my baptism that I belong. The words of this scripture are actually words used in the Sacrament of Baptism in the Catholic Church as a reminder to all of us that we have been called to be these things.

So the next time someone asks you how you are doing, don’t simply respond ‘fine’, instead let them know you feel as a child of God, baptized Christian who is loved and forgiven. Or you can break out into your best James Brown impression and say, “I feel GOOD!”