It's my birthday. I write this at 6:30PM-- killing time before I head off to our midweek service, after having the whole day to myself and the Lord, almost totally secluding myself from my friends; wanting to take time to think, pray and enjoy the day alone (with God). I came out of my apartment in the middle of the day for lunch. By noon, I have received a total of 104 text greetings, and I remember texting back to just one person; not that I'm not appreciative, I just had to control myself from diverting my attention from having a contemplative day. Eccentric though it sounds, that's what I've planned on doing for my birthday- spend it alone.
My personal birthday lunch at Bizu was a blast, in weird way! While I did not splurge (I just had the simplest meal on the menu), I had a party--but a party can never be just for one, but I did have a party for one. Silly, huh!? The only trouble I had was in choosing which cake to celebrate my birthday with. There were just too much to choose from I decided NOT to have cake at all.
My birthday. While a special day had nothing special in particular, no unusual group of folks surprising me with a party or a band of guys with whistles. Nothing out of the ordinary. Just a Wednesday I spent to thinking about how much I have to give thanks for. Perhaps you had a moment like that. How blessed we are. I started thinking about how my personal faith journey has been. How much I’ve learned and grown. The mistakes I’ve made and how I have been able to overcome them despite myself. Decisions and choices made. Dreams - some unfulfilled, but dreams worthy of dreaming just the same.
Family. Friends. Good work that matters and great colleagues. Life. Health. Freedom. A place to call home. Peace of mind. Clarity of thought. I had a good time and came out overwhelmed. It occurred to me that I should not wait for another birthday to be thankful. But birthdays lead us to remembering, assessing, naming: lest I forget or take for granted, or assume too much brilliance on my part, God’s abundant presence in my life. And all the unexpected ways and places where God shows up in people and circumstances to provide little miracles, manna and sustenance for my journey.
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