Today (OK, really tomorrow – September 6) I turn 38.

Yes.  38.  I’m not really sure how that happened but someone pressed the fast forward button and it did.

And so here I am.  38.

Growing older doesn’t really bother me.  I don’t fight the laugh lines (except for the fine line cream when I remember it), I am not hugely bothered by the fact that my chest is not as perky as it once was, and I personally would rather drive my minivan right now over the cute, red convertible I drove in the days of my youth (on most days).

My thirties have thus far been a journey of attempting to attain wisdom in the goodness and sometimes unfairness of life.  It’s during the past eight years that I have married my heartthrob, had three children, moved to a new community, met a beautiful group of sister-friends, and stepped into a small role of church leadership.

And just this past year, since my last birthday, I have learned:

You really do get by with the help of your friends.  My sister-friends have carried me when I couldn’t walk.

Conflict is hard.  It’s not fun.  Sometimes you will be made out to be the bad guy.  But in the end, it doesn’t really matter as long as you’ve kept your eyes on that cross.

Sometimes we are called into a person’s life and then called out.  The same with you – sometimes there are people called into your life for a bit and are then called out.  Accept this and try to glean the lesson.  After all, that was the whole reason your paths crossed in the first place.

I still often get stereotyped but I don’t care as much as I once did.

Coffee keeps me alive. Oh wait.  I knew this last year.

Destruction can bring reconstruction through transformation. 

Hurting people hurt people.

The roads in Africa are horrid and at times almost un-travelable (yes, this is a made-up word).  I will never again complain of a pothole.

My babies are getting older and while this tugs at my mama heart a bit, I am, for the first time in six years, thinking that I might be able to breathe.

Leading a somewhat large ministry is not something you want to do if you want everyone to like you.  But then, if you want everyone to like you, go ahead and plan on a lot of heartbreak.  So then maybe those who are called to church ministry need to work through this which is precisely why we are called to begin with.  Sigh.

Traveling to a third world country can cause you to sink into the blues a bit upon your return.  Without you really knowing it until it becomes really evident to those who love you.  My husband, I love you.  I cannot live without you, so I guess that make you an idol to me.  I’ll work on this.

There is no shame for getting help for said depression and if we all get a little more real about this topic, perhaps there won’t be such a stigma to it and we can all stop feeling like there’s something wrong with us.

Walk through a conflict with a friend and you will see what she’s made of.  Kinda like Eleanor Roosevelt’s famous quote – “Women are like teabags – you don’t know how strong they are until they get into hot water.”

Grace and love and doing the right thing are sometimes hard to do but always the right thing to do.

Someone has to be the one to stick their toe in the water first.  If no one else is going to do it, then in humility, you are called.  Go do it. He will be pleased.

I really love being the mother to two constantly-in-the-dirt-always-sweaty-with-dead-bugs-attached-somewhere-on-their-person ornery and active little boys who giggle much and are so loud that I often can’t hear myself think.

I really love having a daughter that feels like I am her favorite person to lay in bed with and talk through deep thoughts at the end of the day.

I love Ghana.  Or even just Africa in general.  If I could live there half of the year, I would.

My heart’s desire is to adopt a child from Ghana.  Still remains to be seen if it is in God’s plan for us.

Lastly, after much searching for what my lot in life is to be in the midst of mothering young children and being a wife, I see that it’s been right in front of me all along.

On this Multitude Monday, God I thank you for:

571.  Another year here to serve you

572.  The wisdom that comes with each passing year

573.  The mistakes we make and how you use them to become more like your Son

574.  New laugh lines

575.  Being on the upswing

576.  A new emergence

577.  Your wings like eagles

578.  Transformation

579.  The start of releasing the need to please others and instead living to please You

580.  Fantastic reads – like Cutting For Stone by Abraham Verghese

This week may you realize how far you’ve come.  Then give Him the glory.

Joining with Ann for Multitude Monday and Jen for Soli Deo Gloria Sisterhood….