One of my favorite things about this time of year is going to the mailbox.
Almost everyone we know sends picture cards. I love it. Up around my kitchen I have over 30 pictures of families, children and even dogs. I proudly display these, not to brag about how many friends we have or people we know, but to be reminded of the precious gifts we've been given. I too often whine about how many times we've moved and feel sad to think of the friends I have left behind, but in each of these churches, God has blessed us with special people who ministered to us even more than we did to them. I'm also proud to say that I still keep in contact with friends I've known for years, Heather for 28, Kelsey for 20, Betsy and Catherine for 18. I love seeing pictures of their kids, knowing I knew their mommies when....
Watching the children grow up, and babies join the family picture, my parents grow older...all of these things tell me time is moving on. 2006 is almost over and another year will bring more pictures showing older, taller kids, more wrinkles on my friends and family, the joy of more babies entering the world and the mourning of those loved ones who leave it.
"But I will always trust in You and in Your mercy and shall rejoice in Your salvation. I will sing to the Lord because He has blessed me so richly." Psalm 13:5,6
