Reflections on a Birthday

For me birthday's always seem to be about evaluation - evaluating the last year of my life and what was done - what was accomplished, where did I grow, where did I not grow?

This year, my birthday evaluation is very interesting. Interesting because in my mind it has been a year of growth, while others might see it as a year of failure. I have been thinking a lot in the last few weeks, and thinking about what is success. Is success, success in my eyes? Is success, success according to the world? Is the success that I am looking for, success in the eyes of God?

For me, I am really concerned with success in the eyes of God. I know that I do care about success in the eyes of the world and myself too, I wish that I was not like that, but the reality is that I am. what is closest to my heart though, is what does God think.

So this year, I have survived people saying things about me that were not true, I have experienced loss of friendship and relationship, I have seen my wife treated unfairly in my mind, I have seen my wife cry and be in pain because of how people have treated me, I have looked into my boys eyes and saw pain and uncertainity, I have forgave when I did not want to, I have not gossiped or spoke out when I wanted to, I have not defended myself when others thought that I should have, I have found work in a field to which I am new and is often scary, I have walked with God and shared my pain with Him, and in the midst of everything my faith has grown - not in Christians, but in God. So this year, I believe that I have been successful in God`s eyes - God is my protector, my defender, my friend who loves at all times. I have learned much about my faith, about what is really important to me, about how God provides and cares for His loved ones.

So as we all prepare for 2010, my prayer for myself and for you, is that we would be drawn to a radical following of God - to not worry about position, prestige, power or money, but to be drawn to a deeper following of the Cross and what that means for us each and every day. I invite all of us to this journey.

May we all experience a very Merry Christmas and we embrace this baby who goes to the Cross for us, because He loves - and may we inturn love Him and others because of the love that He has for us. Amen.