You know, when it comes to milestones, the teenage years are chock-full. In addition to the very big deal of a driver’s license, at some point there’s usually a first date, a first school dance, a first shot at college admissions exams (sorry about that), a first car, and maybe even a first heartbreak. There’s high school graduation, freshman year of college, and moving away from home. After you turn eighteen there’s the first time you vote, and when you get your first job, there’s also a first tax return.
Granted, that last thing probably isn’t as much fun as the others, but still: milestone!
Odds are that for the rest of your life you’ll look back and recount those big things—those most noticeable rites of passage—but don’t miss this: God is intricately at work in the smaller details of your life too. Those moments are also worth documenting, worth celebrating, and worth remembering.
So if you’ve been praying about something specific, and one morning God clearly answers your prayer through something you read in Scripture? Write it down. If you have a friend who unknowingly encourages you in an area where you’ve been struggling? Write it down. If you’re watching the sunset with your family and feel overwhelmed by the goodness and grandeur of God? Write it down. If you’re struck by an epiphany one Saturday morning when you’re babysitting someone’s kids and suddenly you understand why a certain relationship is difficult for you? This is a big deal. Write it down.
When I was fifteen, I went to the drugstore and bought a blue Mead spiral notebook. I didn’t really know what I wanted to use it for, but eventually I realized I liked to document my days before I went to sleep every night. I’d write down who I talked to, what I was praying about, what I didn’t understand, what I wore that day, what I was excited about, what happened at youth group on Sunday night—pretty much any area of my life was fair game.
It didn’t happen overnight, but in time I started to take notice of the Lord’s kindnesses in the middle of the mundane. At a point in my life when I probably could have won some prizes for self-absorption, the Lord used that blue notebook to teach me to notice Him. And let me tell you something: when we start seeing the hand of God in the ordinary, everyday stuff, we suddenly find ourselves in possession of the key to genuine gratitude. Because we start to realize that God has ordained every moment of our lives—and in His economy, little is much.
I’m not saying that your Sweet 16 party won’t be, like, the greatest moment of all time. However, when we make an effort to open our eyes and our hearts, we’re sure to discover even more meaningful milestones that just happen to be tucked away in our daily routines.
Write them down. Celebrate. Remember.
1. When you think of the big milestones of your teenage years, which one has been your favorite? Or if you haven’t experienced many yet, which ones are you most looking forward to?
2. Can you think of something smaller—an unexpected observation or conversation—that unexpectedly encouraged you or taught you something about the Lord?
3. Do you keep a journal? Why or why not?
4. Why do you think it’s important for us to celebrate and remember the small things?
Today’s Prayer