Its your birthday. Today you turn 40 years old. I have had the priviledge of celebrating your birthday with you every year for the past 11 years. Our journey over these years has been filled with beautiful mountaintops, emotional valleys and the joy of companionship. I have loved you more as every moment has passed. The beauty of a love that is ever evolving is a silent prayer of my heart that I never imagined would be answered.
I celebrate your life, I celebrate God’s plan in placing you in mine and I celebrate these forty reasons why I love you. Although I know I could probably think of a million more!
Reason 1 – Your heart:
Your heart is my safe place. Its filled with beauty, wonder and kindness. I love that you have a heart that is soft, pliable, loves easily and deeply.Your laugh
Reason 2 – Your compassion:
Even though it has been hard for you to navigate a blended family you have done so with such deep compassion. Compassion for our daughter, compassion for her bio-dad and even compassion for her step-mom. You have made it easier to co-parent our beautiful Emma because of you commitment to love others the way Jesus tells us too.
Reason 3 – Wisdom:
You are always ready with gentle wisdom that guides me or provides insight into the situations I am too close too. You are always instilling the importance of wisdom into our children.
Reason 4 – Your father heart:
It was always a prayer of my heart that my children would have a good father. Your father heart is so amazing to watch. You cherish our children, you make sure they know they are loved and you quietly instill discipline and responsibility.
Reason 5 – Your stubbornness:
Sometimes this is a reason for me to get really mad at you but if I’m honest I love that you have a stubborn nature. It means that you are not easily blown with the winds of change. You are steady. You buckle down when you believe in the rightness of something.
Reason 6 – Your faithfulness:
You are always faithful, in the little and the large. I know that my trust is never misplaced when it comes to you. I know that you will always catch me when I leap.
Reason 7 – Your commitment:
Whenever you commit to do something you follow through. I love this quality in you so much. You committed to raising Emma as your own and the evidence of your commitment to her is the relationship I have the pleasure of watching. There is no doubt that your heart belongs to her and hers to you.
Reason 8 – Your loyalty:
I have never had to question your loyalty ever. You are one of the most loyal people I know. Even when you disagree with something, you would rather steer me back on track.
Reason 9 – Your willingness to learn new things:
I have seen you learn so much in the brave new world we have forged together. I love that you love to know new stuff!
Reason 10 – Your vulnerability:
Its a heart on the sleeve kinda thing and it isn’t only reserved for me. You are who you are. I love that.
Reason 11 – Your love for life:
Its an all-embracing love and it gives me such joy that I get to do life with you.
Reason 12 – The way you love to explore new things:
This is also the reason why we are always tired when we get back from a holiday.
Reason 13 – The stability you give me:
I love that you are stable. In mind, emotion and life. You bring the calm to my chaos.
Reason 14 – Our secret place:
I will always love you for this, our new world, a place I didn’t know could exist but a place where we are us. Truly us.
Reason 15 – Your tenacity:
See the point on stubbornness. You are not one to give up easily or ever.
Reason 16 – Your gentleness:
Even in your anger you are gentle with your words and actions. How could I not love that?
Reason 17 – Your love for me:
I’m pretty sure this one is obvious!
Reason 18 – Your ability to be the better man:
When I consider all that we have walked through it would be understandable if you were to throw in the towel and give like for like however you have never done this. You have always risen. You are the successful starter my love!
Reason 19 – The way you hold fast to your beliefs:
Even in the face of great anguish and heartache you have never wavered from your beliefs. You have stood even when it hurt you deeply.
Reason 20 – The way you will do the right thing no matter the cost:
Even when its hard to do, its always your only option.
Reason 21 – Your honesty:
I have always adored this in you. You don’t lie to me, you are always honest even when its not what I want to hear.
Reason 22 – Your strength of character:
I love how you have grown and become a better version of yourself over the years. You are a shinning light.
Reason 23 – Your integrity:
This part of you is so deeply engrained. It brings back the memory of how you returned 6 feeding chairs because you would know that they sold you a box of seven for the price of one even if the store didn’t.
Season 24 – Your love for food:
This is a weird one but I guess its because I love that you enjoy life and all it has to offer with much relish and zeal.
Reason 25 – Your happy go lucky nature:
I love that you are laid back and even when we argue or you are worried about something you are able to put it down.
Reason 26 – Your love of musicals:
I love that I have a theatre partner, I love that you will play the soundtrack to musicals that you love so loudly in your car and I love that you fall into the world of these characters and you can watch the same musical again straight after having just watched it. I love how for months afterwards you may even just watch your favourite scene. I love that your heart is so open and you feel what people feel.
Reason 27 – Your love for dance:
I love how you made me sit through millions of season of “so you think you can dance”. I love how your love for dance has impacted Emma and has given her the gift of freedom that comes from dance. I love that you love dance so much and you love Emma so much that there has never been a dance concert of show of hers that you have not teared up for.
Reason 28 – The way you love our children:
You choose to love them daily. You choose to let them know that they are loved through your actions daily. The way you love our children has given them and me a happy home. How could I not love you for that?
Reason 29 – The feminist in you:
And the non-feminist in me. What a match made in heaven! I love that you value the role women have in the world. I love that you are teaching Emma to be bold, to be strong, to fight and that she has value. I love that you have shown her how she should be treated.
Reason 30 – That you are the only one on this planet who sees me:
I don’t think I can express this clearly but I know that when you read this you will know, because you see me.
Reason 31 – The way you bring out the best in me:
You have loved me in such a way that I had room to grow and blossom into all God destined for me to be. You held my hand as I took each tentative step toward fulfilling my dream of having a degree. You loved me when it was hard, you helped me rest when I was burnt out and you encouraged me to grown.
Reason 32 – The way you worship:
When I watch you worship the King it fills my heart with such joy. The way you fall into God’s presence makes everyone who bears witness to that want to jump in too. I love that you don’t see your talent as entertainment, that you don’t regard your voice as something to showcase but rather you see it as an intimate tool of connection to God. Man. How I have loved to watch your worship and how it inspires me to go deeper still.
Reason 33 – How you love Jesus. Unashamedly.
What else is there to say really? I love that you love our Saviour and it makes me love you more when you share that love with our children.
Reason 34 – Your voice:
Your telephone voice. Just know that I am smiling.
Reason 35 – The way you play the piano:
You don’t play the piano. You bend it to your will, you make it sing a glorious song of worship to Jesus. My heart already positions itself to look to God as soon as you start to play.
Reason 36 – Your silliness:
You are silly. I love that you make me laugh and that we laugh together everyday. I love that you are willing to have a dance party with myself and Noah just because. I love that you have laugh parties with Noah. Your silliness brings colour to my world.
Reason 37 – Your strength:
You my love, are strong. The day your Dad passed away I got to see strength in you I have never seen before. You were strong for your mom. You cared for her and held her hand through all the painful decisions. In the months since it has been hard, but you have been so strong.
Reason 38 – Your perseverance:
You never gave up on me even when I had already given up on me. You stood for both of us, you persevered for both of us and you won the battle for both of us.
Reason 39 – The way you see life and the beauty in the ashes:
You are always able to find the good in everyone, you are always able to find Gods good hand in all things and you are always able to trust that He who gives good gifts will give you beauty for ashes.
Reason 40 – The way you smell. I don’t need to explain.
This year you have been wounded in so many ways. Your heart so heavy and sometimes I wonder if you will still be this person I cherish however there are moments when I catch glimpses of this man. This beautiful, tenacious and joyful soul whom I love so deeply. Today I want to remind you of who you are and what I have always seen and known to be true of you my heart. I know in time your wounds wont be so raw and I know today is hard but be reminded that you are strong, you are loved and you are a light in my life.
Happiest of birthdays my love. The best is surely yet to be and every day I get to be with you is a joy. I could not have asked for a better treasure. I pray that Jesus will wrap you in His love and bind your wounds. That the year ahead will be joyous and filled with glorious rewards.
Pebblecrowns -A Journey with Jesus 