I turn 40 today. I know, try to contain your shock. You thought I was only 29....(I can fantasize if I want to; it's MY birthday!)
The number doesn't seem to bother me all that much; after all, it's just a number. But there is something about the passing of a decade of years you have lived that makes you look back on your life - and look ahead. I will never be in my 30's again.....
ok, that moment of reflection has passed. Moving on.
Looking back on my life I can honestly say I have few regrets. Sure, there are things I would have done differently. But if I went back to do some things over, and all the circumstances of that time still remained the same, I still would make the same choice. There are a few things I would like to go back and tell the girl of my youth though.
To that 7 year old girl out in the front yard pretending to direct a "photo shoot" with all her friends doing action shots, I would whisper to always keep that imagination and love of life. Your bossy spirit will come in handy one day when you're trying to coax a 2 year old to go potty for the first time (the imagination part will help a lot too).
To the insecure 12 year old whose heart is broken over girls she thought were her friends, I would tell to be strong. God has better friends in mind for you and is getting rid of these nasty girls for something much better. Friends that you will greatly need in the months to come that you can't foresee right now.
To the 15 year old young lady who is complaining about her hair and her weight and her....wait, I still do that. I still would tell her to knock it off and enjoy the body God gave her.....like I am telling myself right now. It just gets worse as time goes by!
To the 17 year old high school student who fell in love, I would tell her to not worry. The man you love who is going off to college is still going to be in love with you 23 years later. He still will be treating you like a princess and you still will be feeling you don't deserve him. And you will love him more in the future than you ever thought possible in high school.
To the 26 year old who can't pull herself off the floor after the devastation of losing her dad, I would say to keep crying.....and that it really will be
ok. God will show you He is still with you and your family. Through the tears and the grief and the anger at God, you will come to know Him in a way you never did before. God
will bring joy back into your family. He hasn't left you, even though you feel so alone today.
To the 30 year old who is ready to give up hope of ever being a mom I would say hang on! These boys are coming, and they are loud, and fun, and tiring and
totally awesome.
If I had to do these years over again I would have stressed less and prayed a lot more.
I would worried less about what other people wanted me to do, and searched more of what God wanted me to do.
I would have hugged my dad a lot. An awful lot.
God has been so good to me. He has blessed me with a family I love and true friends I adore beyond words.
I am reminded of the words the Lord spoke to me years ago. As I was putting together a scrapbook of my father to give to my son, the Lord whispered in my ear "Sherri, look at this wonderful life I gave your father. You have been focusing on his death; I want you to focus on his life". What beautiful words to change
someones life. He did that for me that day.
So today I am focusing on this great life God has given me so far. My prayer for this year is that I enjoy the life God has given me. May he challenge me in ways that make me depend only on Him. May he continue to bless our family and show his face to us each and every day. And may I continually strive to glorify him in all I do and think and all I say. Thank you Lord for 40 wonderful years. You are awesome and I love you.
"The LORD will fulfill his purpose for me; your love, O LORD, endures forever—do not abandon the works of your hands." Psalm 138:8
To that 7 year old girl out in the front yard pretending to direct a "photo shoot" with all her friends doing action shots, I would whisper to always keep that imagination and love of life. Your bossy spirit will come in handy one day when you're trying to coax a 2 year old to go potty for the first time (the imagination part will help a lot too).
To the insecure 12 year old whose heart is broken over girls she thought were her friends, I would tell to be strong. God has better friends in mind for you and is getting rid of these nasty girls for something much better. Friends that you will greatly need in the months to come that you can't foresee right now.
To the 15 year old young lady who is complaining about her hair and her weight and her....wait, I still do that. I still would tell her to knock it off and enjoy the body God gave her.....like I am telling myself right now. It just gets worse as time goes by!
To the 17 year old high school student who fell in love, I would tell her to not worry. The man you love who is going off to college is still going to be in love with you 23 years later. He still will be treating you like a princess and you still will be feeling you don't deserve him. And you will love him more in the future than you ever thought possible in high school.
To the 26 year old who can't pull herself off the floor after the devastation of losing her dad, I would say to keep crying.....and that it really will be ok. God will show you He is still with you and your family. Through the tears and the grief and the anger at God, you will come to know Him in a way you never did before. God will bring joy back into your family. He hasn't left you, even though you feel so alone today.
To the 30 year old who is ready to give up hope of ever being a mom I would say hang on! These boys are coming, and they are loud, and fun, and tiring and totally awesome.
If I had to do these years over again I would have stressed less and prayed a lot more.
I would worried less about what other people wanted me to do, and searched more of what God wanted me to do.
I would have hugged my dad a lot. An awful lot.
God has been so good to me. He has blessed me with a family I love and true friends I adore beyond words.
I am reminded of the words the Lord spoke to me years ago. As I was putting together a scrapbook of my father to give to my son, the Lord whispered in my ear "Sherri, look at this wonderful life I gave your father. You have been focusing on his death; I want you to focus on his life". What beautiful words to change someones life. He did that for me that day.
So today I am focusing on this great life God has given me so far. My prayer for this year is that I enjoy the life God has given me. May he challenge me in ways that make me depend only on Him. May he continue to bless our family and show his face to us each and every day. And may I continually strive to glorify him in all I do and think and all I say. Thank you Lord for 40 wonderful years. You are awesome and I love you.
"The LORD will fulfill his purpose for me; your love, O LORD, endures forever—do not abandon the works of your hands." Psalm 138:8
6 comments:
Happy Birthday!! I loved reading this post, so so true!
Happy Birthday, Sherri! You shouldn't write posts like that and leave them for unsuspecting pregnant women to read....it was beautiful and it brought tears to my eyes. :)
Sherri! First of all, Happy Birthday:) I never would have guessed you were 40!
Second, SWEET post. It made me tear up a lot. That was beautifully written.
Sherri - you made me cry! So sweet. Thank you for your wisdom. Happy bday!!!!!
Sherri, Sherri, Sherri, now I have to go redo my makeup! Thanks a lot! Beautifully written!! Happy Birthday friend.
Sherri,
I enjoyed sharing your birthday with you. As everyone else said, your writing brought on some tears. It was so true and brought on some memories of my own. You really do need to start writing a book.
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