Thoughts on a 53rd birthday

Thankful for all who helped celebrating my birthday – including pizza at Cugino’s, a surprise nine holes of golf with a brother (who, it should be said, beat me…in spite of it being my birthday), my gracious wife taking me out for a steak dinner (and arranging last night’s fun party, hosted by friends with a real gift of hospitality), funny and encouraging cards and Facebook posts (baby Jack D. gets the prize for the cutest!), thoughtful gifts, and calls from family and faraway friends. It makes me more aware than ever of how grateful I should be for such gracious blessings – gifts of grace that are not merely more than I deserve, but the opposite of what I deserve – and I know that they come to me because of the amazing grace of God, the ultimate giver of every good and perfect gift.