An 8 year-old

Today we celebrate Nathan-Raegan's 8th birthday. Actually we've been celebrating all weekend, no all month. Someone in our family decided we have birthday months instead of days. So Happy Birthday Day Rae-Rae! Last night Kerry and I were going through old pictures of the little man, it was fun and sad to trace his life up to this point with photos. One of my favorite was taken when I had just returned from my first trip back to Kenya. He was too young to remember me being gone and yet a little shocked to see me in person. Another, one that I will cherish for a lifetime, is of Dad (Allen) and him devouring a bag of popcorn together. I didn't realize when I took the picture that it would be the last time they would be together. Funny, Reagan still to this day can put a bag of popcorn away faster than any 8 year-old I know. His grandfather would be proud. It got me thinking....will heaven be this way. Will we sit before our Maker, our Judge and revisit old photos that captured our lives journey? I think I remember some revival speaker somewhere in my teen years using this as a scare tactic to make me walk the straight and narrow, or come up front and rededicate my dedication. But in a not scary way, in a peaceful, thank you for the blessings, thank you for the grace, thank you for the saving times of You Father God. I wonder if it we'll have that with Him? If you know me I'm not a big theological thinker. I choose to "trust God and do the next thing", as my father used to say. So I won't be pondering this long or diving into scripture for the next week looking for answers. It just struck me, how will I celebrate life with my Jesus? If I do or if I don't is ok by me, but it does remind me to stop and look at the picture of my life today, yesterday, last week. Stop and thank Him for making life so much fun even in the face of the trials of life, because where else would I rather be than with my 8 year-old, his sister and mother?! Be blessed today as you think of the photos of your life.