Surprise!

What a great day!

I love surprises - both when I am surprised and when I can surprise someone. That's why I loved my niece Macy's plan to throw a surprise party for her mother (my sister) today. And the best thing is...it worked!

So much fun when we saw Kristy walk in the door to see her family and friends.

And then we ate. Awesome burgers, awesome trimmings, homemade ice cream, and one of the best cakes ever.

Swimming, boating, talking...just hanging out.

I really think days like today are a tiny glimpse, a shimmer, of the joy God has prepared for his children in the new heavens and new earth. Eternity basking in the glory of the Lamb, and living life in community with all the saints from through out history. It's going to be glorious!

But while we wait for that, we can enjoy days like today. Awesome!

Happy birthday, sis!

A special day

It's only happened four times. Ever. Today is both Mother's Day and my niece's birthday, a day of remembrance for me and a day of celebration.

Mom

Haley

Among other implications, I only have one place to put a profile picture on Facebook.

But seriously, it is a day full of mixed feelings. I miss my mother terribly, and at the same time I am so thankful for what she did to make me the man I am today. (To get a wonderful description of her, take time to listen to the audio link at the bottom of this blog post.) And I am so very proud of my niece Haley, who has graduated from the University of Alabama and has a wonderful heart, following in the footsteps of her mother on that.

Two amazing people being celebrated on the same day.

It calls to mind a scripture that seems to be very strange. In the second of the Ten Commandments delivered to Moses, the LORD instructs his people not to make any graven images - any idols to worship. And then he says this,

(F)or I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, responding to the transgressions of fathers by dealing with children for the iniquity of their parents to the third and fourth generations of those who reject me, and showing covenant faithfulness to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments. 

- Exodus 20:5-6 (New English Translation)

What a seemingly odd statement - difficult for our Western minds to get our arms around it. We are so individualistic, and we tend to think of God's action in terms of intervention and miracles. But this statement would not have been at all surprising in its cultural context, for they understood YHWH to be God who works through history and his hand is in the details of daily life. So really, this passage is just expressing a truth that we all can observe:

The choices we make have consequences.

When people follow the instructions of the Lord - living consistent lives of loving God and loving people - and teaching their children to do so, the way God has wired human nature means that there is an excellent chance of that faithfulness being passed down. And unfortunately, the opposite is true - when children have terrible examples to follow, the results are tragic way too often.

This would be a principle that Paul in the New Testament would call "reaping and sowing" - you get what you plant. Now through Jesus we have the  amazing grace of God, which busts up the cycle and gives people from the worst backgrounds a brand new start.

I say all this to make a point about my mother. She fostered an atmosphere of love, obedience, and trusting God with the details of her life. She helped those who were in need, often without anyone ever knowing. She provided a listening ear for her children and grandchildren so that we knew someone was there who would love us no matter what, but guide us to the truth.

And, true to the passage above, I see her fingerprints on her grandchildren. Holly. Hunter. Macy. Haley. Brooke. Her grandchildren, the nieces and nephew I love so much, bear the mark of their grandmother's faith. So, there it is - to the third generation.

The hard scriptures are just as important as the easy ones. I am thankful for this one - and for my mother who lived it out.

Turning point

Today is kind of an important day for me. A milestone. You might even call it a birthday..

On this date back in the 7th grade, I made a very important decision - the most important decision of my life. For it was on this date way back then that I gave my life to Christ and began a personal relationship with my Creator.

Yes, I had been a good church kid growing up and for the most part stayed out of trouble. I knew the facts. But that weekend our church had what was them called a "Lay Ministry Weekend." Church members from another church in Dothan came and shared with us their personal stories - how knowing and following Jesus had changed their lives. Several young people about my age and shared on Friday night and Saturday.

One of them, Jon, made an especially strong impression on me. Several months later he died from a head injury in football practice at the age of 14. In his short life, he made a tremendous impact for the Kingdom of God and his impact .continues today.

But I digress. As these new friends shared with me, I realized that just going to church and trying to be good was not what God wanted from me and was not going to get me anywhere. He wanted me to know him. So on the afternoon of May 6 I prayed, told God I wanted to be his, and put my faith in Jesus.

There have been a lot of speed bumps, trials, temptations, and out-and-out failures. Heck, I've messed up several times just today. But he has been there with me through all of them and continues to work in my life to conform me to the image of Christ.

 There is not a moment in my life that was more important. Because of that I was changed. For good.

Extraordinary cakes

Tonight, we celebrated my niece Macy's 22nd birthday, as well as that of her friend and roommate Hillary Kate (who thus managed to stretch her celebration even longer than Macy!). Fun time...great dinner, lots of laughs with family and friends. But I never expected to walk into the house and see this:

In case you think your eyes are deceiving you, they are not. That's a cake lined with gobs of three of the world's best Little Debbie snack cakes: Nutty Bars, Chocolate Cupcakes, and (my favorite growing up) Swiss Rolls. Oh. My. Goodness. And cake with icing inside.

Or this:

That, my friends, is a cake contained inside a ring of Kit-Kat bars and covered with M&Ms. Wow!

So how did this go over? What do you think? The guests of honor looked pretty happy about it:

Happy birthday, ladies!

I love birthdays - thanks!

A short message of thanks to the best friends and family ever:

No, I'm FOUR...a birthday story

The little boy was excited about his birthday party...but also confused. He knew that he was about to hit a major milestone -- five. years. old. But it wasn't his birthday yet. It was Sunday, and he had three days to wait. But for some reason, there were the presents. (Would he get that Superman suit he wanted?) There were the kids from his neighborhood. And there was the cake. With five candles.

As the cameras rolled (yes, he had one of those fathers), his parents tried over and over to get him to hold up five fingers. After all, this video record of his fifth birthday would be preserved for a long time, and when you're five, you hold up five fingers. But the little boy was stubborn, and they could not make him do it. "How old are you?" "Four" came the answer...over and over and over. Why the early birthday party? Why would his family do this to such a sweet little boy?

Well, he was about to get an amazing birthday present -- one that required his mother to miss being home for his birthday. For you see, his mother was checking into the hospital the next day to have a baby. A baby sister, who would be born the day before he turned five, and the best birthday present ever. A present that would multiply into another present 26 years later, and still be giving until the most current anniversary of that date...which happens to be today.

Yes, I was that stubborn little boy, and I haven't changed much...I'm still like that And the present was my youngest sister Kristy.

Happy birthday, sis!