Birthdays are a special time when we can pause from the riga – ma – roll of our daily routines and celebrate LIFE!
How do you celebrate your birthday? Do you have any birthday traditions?
On January 15th I celebrated my birthday, and had some incredible experiences jam – packed into the day.
On my birthday, I …..
– Danced in the rain
– Walked around my neighborhood, met my neighbors and prayed for them
Used a machete to chop some vines
– Heard the “Happy Birthday” song sung to me by my absolutely wonderful team/squadmates in the dark ( with the exclusion of headlamps.)
– Enjoyed Guatemalan cake (and some Oreos)
Funny story about the Oreos: Around the 3rd of January, in the midst of wrapping things up in the States, I had a thought that no one would acknowledge my birthday, and I just had a sad mental picture of myself on a stoop, eating birthday Oreos by myself. When my team/ squad mates finished singing to me and said, “We have Oreos for everyone!” I was flabbergasted. It was so cool to realize that God wanted me to not only enjoy birthday Oreos, but enjoy them with my friends.
I am so incredibly thankful for my team mates/ squad mates, as well at two YWAM ( Youth with a Mission) teams here in Guatemala. As I’ve been living with these amazing people, I’ve seen more sides of God’s Love, Mercy, Grace and Courage than I ever thought possible. The Bible mentions that we were meant to live in a community, and actually doing it, ( to the extreme in this case) although occasionally challenging, is simply wonderful. It is the most incredible gift to serve God alongside the people I’m serving with.
Although we’ve only been out of the states for about nine days, it feels like nine years. Each day is so full of new experiences, new friends, new challenges, new victories, and new sides of Our Father’s Love.
I have so much more to share, but I’ll get to more of it later. Thanks for reading!
Blessings Galore!
