Kick-start for a Monday

God loves my children more than I do. My friend visiting from Indiana this week reminded me of this and it got me to thinking.
First, God loves our children more than we do because he's capable of perfect love. No matter how much we try, our love is always tainted by icky human stuff: selfishness, pride, ambition, vanity, and on and on. One of our pastors pointed out that he believes one reason there won't be marriages in heaven (as Jesus said in Matthew 22:30) is we'll be able to love perfectly and so won't love one person more than another. Interesting, isn't it?
So here's where I got to thinking - What other important things in my life is God more involved with than I've imagined? What else does he love and care about more than I do?
Does God love my marriage more than I do? Obviously, because I've not treated my marriage at all times as I should. So God loves my marriage and cares for it on a more consistent and deeper level than me. Cool. Little intimidating.
My home, My job, My friends - the things and people God has put in my life, things which he loves perfectly and I treat - well - not so good all the time.
My writing? Authors say their books are their babies and I know that feeling. So, wait a minute, God isn't ignoring my book or indifferent about it - he loves it more than I do? He wants the best for my writing? Wait, and he even actually knows what is best.
God loves my life more than I do AND he wants the best for it AND he knows what the best actually looks like. Well, now that makes for a good Monday!

Happy Birthday to Me!

I am 48 years old today! How awesome to get another birthday. As you can probably already tell, I’m not one of those who laments the passage of time or the adding of another candle to the cake. It’s a privilege to get older.
Right this very minute there are people in the hospital who would give anything – anything to be told they could live to be my age. There are parents who would lay down their own life if it meant their child could be given the chance to one day blow out 48 birthday candles. Thousands are waking up this morning hoping and praying that the drugs or surgeries or treatments they endure will give them enough days to make it to their 48th birthday.
Blessed beyond all comprehension is what I am, just to be breathing. The blessings on top of that are too many to even mention. So it is a very, very happy birthday. I can honestly say – there is no one on earth happier than me.
Let’s all have cake!