Blessed Birthdays

Efrain and I are in the busy season. Here's a rundown:
Nov: 3 My Birthday
Nov. 8 Efrain's Birthday
Nov. 13 Olivia's Birthday
Nov. 16: David's Birthday
Nov: 25 Thanksgiving
Dec. 4 Jonathan's Birthday
Dec. 11 Our 11 year Anniversary
then...Christimas!

Some people asked if we planned our birthdays this way. ;) I couldn't have even if I had tried. It's a wonderful season of reminders of all that we're thankful for. There is great joy in watching your children complete another year of life and reflect on all the changes you see in them. Some changes happen because that's the way kids are. Other changes have come about through discipline and training. I imagine God looks at us the same way. This last month Efrain and I have been team-teaching the book of Hebrews at the Bible Institute Extension in Nochixtlan, Oaxaca. In preparing for the class, I myself had to delve deeper into the Scriptures. I found some wonderful news there for me! I'll share it with you, too. The good news is that when it comes to change, God helps us! Sounds overly simple, yet I was thrilled to find it there. We are given an impossible commandment, "Be holy!" In an increasingly slimy world, how to you walk through it without getting slimed yourself? The good news is that at every point of opportunity, we can obey, increasing our faith, and God promises to help us live a holy life. Psalm 23 says it this way, "...He leads me in paths of righteousness for His name's sake." Such a comfort to know that God is carving out a path for those who strive to follow Him. This birthday year, with God's help I know I'll continue to change. I look forward to it!