A Gift & A Birthday

 

A GIFT & A BIRTHDAY

Hmmm....what's in the box?  I received this surprise gift box for my birthday.  It says, "Cheryl's Cookies" on top - and I'm a huge fan of cookies, so I'm eager to open the box and see what's inside.

Oh, wow!  A box full of assorted iced cookies - 36 cookies!  

Some of the cookies are decorated, some are sprinkled with nuts, a few are plain, and others are simply iced.  I do love an iced cookie!!  Most of the cookies are vanilla with buttercream frosting - always good.  I also like the butter pecan flavor, but not too crazy about the mint or cafe latte.  The plain sugar cookie - well, it's plain, what can I say.  All in all, it is a delicious gift that I will enjoy for months to come (I froze some).

So, what does this description of my mystery box and the many cookies have to do with a birthday message?

As I thought about the unopened box with questions about its content, it made me think of the new year in my life that is spread out before me.  The content of each hour and day and week within this year's box is a mystery to me, but not to God.  I love that God knows each breath I will take until the day I die or I'm raptured to heaven.  The Psalmist writes, "All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be," 139:16.

When I look at the different cookies and taste the different flavors, I'm reminded that each day within that box of my next year will be different -- some days will taste better than others.  Some days will be pretty and some days will be plain.  I may not be too crazy about some of those days, but other days will surely bring me delight.  I love verses 9-10, "If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast."  No matter what kind of day I will have, God is there with me -- always.

I will weave Psalm 139 into my thoughts as I consider that God brought me into the world on May 7, 1946, "I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made..."  He knows everything about me - even more than I know about myself, "...you are familiar with all my ways.  Before a word is on my tongue, you know it completely, O Lord."  He cares for me deeply - "You hem me in - behind and before; you have laid your hand upon me..."  And I praise His name - "How precious to me are your thoughts, O God!"

A birthday is cause for celebration of a life created by God for His good purpose.  Every single life is special to Him "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you," Jeremiah 1:5.  There are no throw-aways in God's creations - He has a plan for every life.  I hope that your birthday will be cause for celebration this year and that your box of days will spread out before you with blessing upon blessing.  

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!