In our pre-adolescent years or earlier, we have our first crushes. It could be a teacher or someone we see on T.V. For me, it was Hayley Mills. That perfect, pretty, girl-next-door face from Disney movies like “Pollyanna” and “That Darn Cat”. Watching her come of age, and then in later years as the junior high teacher “Miss Bliss”. What a name! The boys in that class were swooning too.

We lose our “Bliss” too often. We find out that the one(s) we had a crush on were already taken or were not pure as the driven snow like we fantasized. As a state of being, we eschew bliss unless it’s a fleeting moment. Ignorance, avoidance, or lack of ambition might be the unwanted byproduct of being in a blissful state. But for all the grief and suffering in our lives, why can’t we allow ourselves to experience the bliss that God offers?

There is irony in the fact that “Pollyanna”, a character Hayley Mills plays, represented to me the first fictional embodiment of when something bad happens to someone so innocent and positive. We cannot always be a Pollyanna – or can we? We catch ourselves when we wallow in self-pity. Or saying, “why me?” Remember the serenity prayer in those instances. We all have the power to make and live lives of our own choosing, barring the unforeseen circumstances. We can’t change the weather or the traffic or growing older. We the unconditional love of God serves as the constant reminder that can decide the attitude and our response to the “crappies”. This is when bliss, while it may seem fleeting sometimes, is the condition of peace that our Lord wishes to bestow on us. Your name doesn’t have to be “Pollyanna” or Hayley Mills or any other heartthrob you may have idolized. Just be your wonderful, perfectly made self.

Pastor Art