Wall of Wisdom

It's my birthday today!

And as always, on my birthday, I can't help but reflect on past birthdays. For my seventh birthday, I received the entire set of the Little House books. I was ecstatic! My twenty-second birthday was spent in the frigid gym of the high school, trying to survive parent-teacher conferences after only three days on the job. (I could hardly remember the names of my students! Definitely embarrassing when a parent is talking to you about his or her child and you have no idea whom he or she is talking about!)

Three years ago, my husband was laid off on my birthday.

Two years ago, we were living with my in-laws, and we also celebrated the addition of our second son.

And last year, I was able to host a potluck in our new home. My guest list that night was very intentional, ranging from single female friends in their twenties to friends with young children to empty-nesters in their fifties and sixties. I had heard once that every person should have in his or her life 'people who walk before you, people who walk with you, and people who walk behind you.' Those were the people with whom I wanted to celebrate that night. Since then, several have moved away, but they are all still very dear to my heart.

Do you have people like that in your life? Growing up, I didn't have friends to whom I could confide, and I didn't have any mentors, though I certainly could have used one! I drifted blindly through high school and college, trying to live a Godly life without really knowing what that meant. Only in recent years have I made a great effort to surround myself with my 'wall of wisdom', people whom I can bounce things off of. They are people of Godly wisdom and great life experience, people with a spirit of integrity and humbleness. I can trust these people to guide me in the direction God would want me to go and teach me how to live for His glory. And then, in turn, I can be a 'wall of wisdom' to those younger than me.

I'm glad to say that today, on my birthday, I am in a better place because of those people in my life. What a journey it has been, the past thirty-three years!