I love birthdays!
I’m that type of friend who plans surprise birthday parties. I enjoy going through all the hassle of organizing a party, collecting birthday messages from your loved ones, writing long and heart-warming letters, buying gifts and baking cakes. And because this is the love that I choose to give, it’s also the love I long to receive from others.
Every year, I would look forward to my birthday. I see it as that one day when I can boldly and accurately say “It’s Cha Time!” It’s that one day of the year when all the attention is centered on me. It’s that one day when I’d hear the ‘Happy Birthday Song’ sang to me over and over again. Oh, how I love birthdays! I would normally stay up and wait until midnight to see who would greet me first and wait until the day finishes to see who would greet me last. I’d eagerly and repeatedly check my phone for birthday greetings and reply to them right away. I’d gladly and expectantly receive gifts and letters, stack them in one big pile and take a photo of them as a remembrance.
Last year as I was nearing my 19th birthday, I found out that my family was throwing a surprise birthday party for me. They were inviting everyone – my relatives and my friends from school and from church. I was so thrilled to find out about it! Yet again, another surprise was spoiled by me, the master of surprises. It was funny because after finding out about it, I began inviting my friends. I’d tell them, “Hey! I’m having a surprise birthday party at home on Wednesday. You should come!” They’d be confused for a moment, and then laugh once they hear the story.
A few days before the party, I was at the mall with my parents when my friend, who also happened to be my family’s accomplice in the surprise, texted me. She explained to me that my sister wasn’t doing anything – that my sister wouldn’t reply to her texts, answer her calls and meet her at home. I became so pissed upon hearing this. I was so mad at my sister. So, without thinking of anyone else but myself, I texted her something like this: “Why aren’t you replying to her? She’s been doing everything, the least you could do is reply. If you have no plans of prioritizing the surprise then you might as well just cancel it. I never asked for it anyway.”
I fell into a state of utter and profound silence. My dad confronted me as he immediately noticed my change of mood – eyebrows pulled down together, eyes wide open, tearing up and glaring, upper eyelids raised, and lips tightly closed with the margins. There I was an 18-year-old girl (almost nineteen), crying like a baby on her daddy’s lap as he spoke. I can no longer remember his exact words, but I do remember realizing how selfish I was. My sister was having a tough time at work and yet she was trying her best to pull off a surprise birthday for me. She was exerting so much effort just to make me happy on my birthday and I failed to see it.
I was wrong to disrespect my sister.
I was wrong to complain and grumble.
I was wrong to think that birthdays are self-glorifying.
Birthdays aren’t self-glorifying, but God-glorifying. The truth is, in any day and every day, there’s only one person who is worthy to be glorified, a person no other than our Lord and Savior – Jesus Christ. There’s no such thing as a ‘Cha time.’ It’s only and always God’s time. Every day is Jesus’ day. It’s not about me, it’s about Him. It’s about our eyes and hearts being centered on who He is and what He has done.
Birthdays are not about receiving, but giving. It’s about giving thanks to God for the life He has given us. It’s about giving back to God for all the blessings He has bestowed upon us. It’s about giving love to the people God brought into our lives.
Realizing that birthdays are celebrations of God’s love, grace and goodness is an epiphany every human should encounter. However, more important than this, we must realize that the celebration of God’s love, grace and goodness is not limited to birthdays, anniversaries, Thanksgiving, Christmas or New Year. Every day is a day to celebrate because every day is a day made by God. Psalms 118:24 says, “This is the day the Lord has made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.”
I keep this to heart and strive to live it out every day of my life rejoicing for the Lord. Others describe me as someone who is bubbly, jolly, extroverted, friendly and cheerful. They say I’m always so happy and smiling. It’s not that I have stopped getting sad, hurt or depressed. I still do. It’s not that I don’t have problems, struggles, and disappointments. I have plenty of those. It’s just that amidst all the sadness and struggles, I know I have something bigger. I have someone greater. I have a good, gracious, and loving God.
“It’s not about me, it’s about Him.”
This 7-worded truth is what keeps me grounded every day. Whether I’m sad or happy, excited or disappointed, confused or assured, I always remind myself of this truth. It’s not about me, it’s about Him. I remind myself that I live not for myself, but for my God. I remind myself that my purpose is to make disciples, my home is in the presence of God, and my ultimate motivation is the cross.
Seven days ago was my 20th birthday. By God’s grace, it was a Christ-centered day. And I’m sure it wouldn’t have been a God-glorifying day if I hadn’t prayed this simple prayer the night before:
“Dear Lord, my only wish is to glorify You on my birthday tomorrow – that you will be the center of it all. Guard my heart and mind from the temptations of Satan, so that I may not be selfish. Amen”
It was a birthday unlike all the birthdays I’ve had. I no longer stayed up until midnight to see who would greet me first or who would greet me last. I wasn’t expecting for gifts. And I wasn’t demanding for a surprise birthday party. I woke up at 7am and worked from 8am-5pm. Afterwards, I went straight to church to have fellowship with friends. Then, I went home to have dinner with my family. It may have been the dullest birthday I’ve had in my entire life, but it was the most meaningful one yet.
In that dull and simple day, I woke up with a smile on my face. It was hard to explain why I was smiling, but I knew for sure that it was God who put that smile on my face. I didn’t have a surprise party or a pile load of gifts. I only had God and I knew I had everything.
Instead of rejoicing in receiving, I rejoiced in giving. I treated my disciples lunch the next day. We studied God’s word and celebrated the Lord’s supper together. We had fellowship with another. We shared our testimonies and prayed for one another.
As I turned 20, I learned to rejoice in what really matters. For me, the greatest gift one can receive aside from Jesus is the gift of making Him happy. God gave me that gift. Words are not enough to express how blessed, privileged and overwhelmed I am to receive such a heart-warming gift. I am not worthy, but He continues to show me grace.
God used my loved ones – my family, friends, and disciples – to tell me that He is pleased with me. Most, if not all, of the birthday messages I received talked about Jesus. The messages were filled with them saying thanks for having seen Jesus in me. Here’s a few of those messages:
God answered my prayer. For that, I am grateful. For that, I am joyful. He alone was glorified that day. What more could I ask for?
Truly, truly, truly, it’s not about me. IT’S ABOUT HIM.
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