Happy Birthday MOM!

Today is my mom's birthday so I thought I'd put it in the title 'cause she's great & it's her birthday!

We're back in Colorado for a 3rd time & it's a glorious place to be. This morning we woke up to the ground being slightly snow covered and the air a tad bit more brisk than it has been. It's nice because we're not going to experience much winter since we'll be in SE Asia for most of it. Plus my mom just recently sent me a box with a few warmer clothing articles which makes the colder weather more enjoyable. I know we're supposed to be living this simple life, but I'm still an over packer most days & I refilled the box that mom had sent stuff in and still had stuff to go in, but there wasn't enough room. The fact that I was willing to send so much back was pretty big for me.

We have continued to be blessed with great host homes & travels. Not only have I been reunited with family in CO now, but also with friends in KS, we had a friend visit all of us in NE, we're currently in Evergreen, CO where my friend Philip is the pastor & his wife, Liz, is a good friend too. Then to top it all off, tomorrow we head to Roy, UT where I will get to visit & stay with some more family that I haven't seen in many years.

While on the road it's been apparent to me how important loving on everybody is no matter what. Not just everybody, but how blessed I have been in my life to be loved on, despite all my downfalls, by friends & family. I always knew that my friends & family were important, but I all too often have put my friends before family. This is a struggle because they're all wonderful people whom I love dearly, but how do you put one before the other? We're all brothers & sisters in Christ & God is working in, through, & around us all in so many different ways that it's good to learn from another & share God's work.

I guess I just want everybody to know how blessed we all are. Recently I've seen it through friends & family & there are many other ways God works through our daily lives. Some times we think God needs to show us things in big ways, but we look to hard or expect something bigger since it is from God, but really God is always in the simple things in our lives too. It's a good reminder.