How many birthdays have you?

Imagine a few more candles and we're there!

I'm 18 today.

Surprised? 

Here's the story: 18 years ago today, I understood for the first time what Jesus' sacrifice on the cross had done for me. I recognized that I was a sinner, realized that I needed Jesus and accepted Him into my heart. That was the day that I was born again.

I know for certain that it was June 27, 1994, because the amazing, godly woman who led me in that prayer keeps records of such things, and I asked her about it a few years ago.

So, now I celebrate two birthdays each year; one physical and one spiritual.

This year is a milestone for me. I've been saved for 3/4 of my life. Also, it signifies the true end of my teenage years. I have gone through six years of college and finally graduated; I've gone through two breakups that both taught me a few valuable lessons; I've experienced the ache of ending friendships - and the miracle of resurrecting one I thought was lost. I've gone through so many changes as a person, physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually, that I am not even the same person I was a year ago.

And now it's time to enter a new phase: adulthood.

An 18-year-old may not act like an adult, but she is still legally considered an adult and must suffer consequences and receive rewards as an adult does. There are different benefits and different rules that come with being an adult. An adult has more responsibility, yet more freedom to choose how to deal with her responsibilities. An adult does not make excuses, but admits when she is at fault and strives to overcome her weakness. An adult recognizes that "independance" is just a wishful invention of teenagers who think that the rules their elders set for them are restrictive, when, in fact, they are for protection. There is no independence-only a misplaced reliance on the self, which falls away when each person recognizes that they need each other and God to get them through life.

An adult is not defined by what she does, but by who she trusts in every minute of the day. But acting like an adult certainly helps! C.S. Lewis said it well in Mere Christianity:

"Very often the only way to get a quality in reality is to start behaving as if you had it already. That is why children's games are so important. They are always pretending to be grown-ups-playing soldiers, playing shop. But all the time, they are hardening their muscles and sharpening their wits, so that the pretence of being grown-up helps them to grow up in earnest." 

So, from this day forward, I am going to really start acting like an adult. And I will start becoming one. I will keep my trust in Christ always, even when my fears try to tell me he's turned his back. I will strive to know his nature, and lean on him when I know I need his help.

And I'll celebrate little milestones like this: my birthday.

In closing, I'd like to share the second verse of the Birthday song. I'm not sure how many of you have heard or sang this before, but we always sang it in the Grace Brethren church I grew up in, so I've become very fond of this verse:

Happy Birthday to you,
Only one will not do;
Born again means salvation,
How many birthdays have you?