Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday......... We come upon an awkward moment - what to do when people are singing “Happy Birthday” to you. - or, what to write in Birthday cards. Eighteen years ago (1 day, 15 hours, 24-ish minutes from now), I was born. Seven minutes later, my little sister. We were a package deal. Everything came in two’s, and was shared - like birthday’s. From that moment on, we were known as ‘the twins’. When we were little, we got dressed in matching clothes quite often. Typically, I had everything purple, and Rebecca, my sister, had everything pink. (Now, I absolutely despise the color of lavender!) It will be my little sister’s birthday as well, so this is for her..... Okay, let’s go on. :) To this day, I have been blessed with the day of life approx. 6,570 times - I’ve been breathing for over 57,000,000 seconds. Legally, at the eighteenth year of life, one becomes an adult. I am no longer considered a ‘minor’. I can now engage in a contract, get married, vote, serve in the military, buy/possess firearms, etc. The legal system may be saying I am an adult, but I don’t feel like one. I feel like a little kid trying to act like an adult - and I know I am not the only one. Many of us freeze at the thought of adult-hood. We want to revert back to child-hood. We are desperately grabbing for any senses of security while being pushed over the edge of our comfort zone. Being an adult means different stresses, confusion, bills, responsibilities... and on and on. The pressure and responsibility that comes with the territory is unwanted, and often ignored, while we seek to enjoy the benefits. I don’t want to grow up! I recently finished a book, Life Quest, by Cary Schmidt. I am never disappointed when I read one of his books. I love the connection he makes. As with, he is a great writer - my favorite! This book really dealt with that fact; Our generation, which doesn’t want to grow up. It was great. I can't explain it, all I can say is to read it. Here are a few sections from the book. -----
He {God} created life to move forward - each year building on the last, each experience preparing you for the next, each assignment training you for something greater, and each new blessing bringing new responsibility......Ignoring the future doesn’t work - it still shows up. It’s like a freight train barreling down the track toward you - you can jump on and enjoy the ride, or you can get run over. People who run from God just don’t know Him Get over yourself - and quickly... live with a heart for those you will one day love. The significance of a gift is not determined by the gift - it is determined by the giver........The value of any life is in the God......Shortcuts don’t just shorten the distance, they cheapen the gift. Would you rather... enter Heaven to God’s smile and “Well done”, or have Him wipe away the stinging tears of regret? Your future desires are based upon your imagination... and your imagination is far more generous than reality, so when you finally get what you think you want, it’s not what you imagined! It’s not what you expected..... Your desires set you up for disappointment and drop you hare...(But,) God is in the business of exceeding your expectations.........Many young adults are scared to death of the following words - God’s will.... are you scared of the following words? Surprise birthday party! Summer vacation! Christmas morning! Graduation gift! If you are, then you need more help than I can give you.... How could you possibly fear a meeting between your desires and your Designer? You really don’t want a battle of the wills with God, because He will let you win - in which case, you loose. When God fills your life and your heart, you stop wanting. That word WANT means to be lacking something. It doesn’t mean you don’t desire something; it means your life isn’t diminished for not having it! When you are content, you stop living your life from a position of desperation and start living from a position of satisfaction - fullness. 2 Cor. 4.7-9.... Though Paul’s world was crumbling around him at times, his inner heart was strong and confident. He had a strength that nothing could touch.... This Christ-based confidence compels us forward through resistance. It gives quiet, inner strength that cannot be touched by the unpredictability of life........Your Christian life is first a battle within. You will loose some, you will win some... You may feel at times like you’re failing, but if you’re still fighting, you’re winning..........YOU were the prize that made the cross bearable for Jesus. HE is the prize that make life bearable for you.... Keep you eye on the prize! You will never be able to remove pain from life. You’ll never be able to avoid discomfort completely. You will be opposed... Every good thing you attempt in your life will be opposed. Every right decision will be tested. Every right thing will be resisted. Nothing moves forward without friction. Wait. Tunnels have beginnings and ends. I don’t freak out when I’m going through one. I just anticipate that it will end. (And sometimes I honk the horn all the way through.) “When I turned eighteen and graduated from high school, it’s as though God put my entire life in a box and began to shake it up. And He continued shaking it through my college years. Everything changed overnight and continued to change - my friends, my school, my family, my time, my jobs, everything. Only one thing remained constant - my God.” ----- I still have mixed feelings of this ‘growing up’ thing. I’m still not to crazy about it, but I guess it’s worth it. I think my level of maturity depends on who I am with, but I’m closer to the goal than I was last year. As for this time next year? Lord willing, I'll be sitting in a classroom in OKC. As for my degree of 'grownup-ness'.... well, I may never graduate.
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Lizzy parkerMarriage.
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January 2023
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