5 reasons why birthdays matter

Today is Derek's 28th birthday and I woke up so excited, telling him happy birthday every 5 minutes and making cheesy comments like, "have a good day birthday boy!"

But, Derek is not so into his birthday and never really has been.
He says birthdays are just another day....but I beg to differ.

I want to be sensitive, however, because I know with birthdays comes a lot of pain and bad memories. But because of that I want to give 5 reasons why birthdays matter to me and hopefully you. 

Birthdays matter because...

1. being born is a privilege and blessing...

Awhile back I watched a Netflix documentary called "It's a Girl" which reported the gendercide that is happening in places like China and India, where baby girls are being killed at extreme rates. This documentary reported that there are 200 million girls that should be alive today if they hadn't been killed.
In America alone, on average 1.21 million babies are aborted each year (link to stats). Again, I want to be sensitive towards men and women who have had abortions because God's grace in Jesus Christ is sufficient to forgive all of ours sins. I only put those statistics up to say that being born is not the usual.
My mom and dad surprisingly got pregnant with me outside of marriage when my mom was so the ripe young age of 20. It would have normal or maybe even socially acceptable for her to abort me, but I am so thankful that she didn't.
I know there are many children who wish they hadn't been born or at least not into their family, and its understandable.
But, birthdays matter because being born is a blessing.

2. they are foreknown...

You are not a mistake, accident, or happenstance.
Each birthday we celebrate is a day of resting that God planned for me to be here.
Psalm 139 is beautiful song by David reflecting on the Lord's goodness before he was even born.

In 139:16 David says, "Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be."

There is not one day that goes by that has taken God by surprise, not one struggle, heartache, or celebration.
So, birthdays matter because we can rest in the sovereignty of God, knowing that he has foreknown and counted all of our days.

3. it reflects a greater birth...

This point can go in two different directions.
First, birthdays matter because God decided out of all his infinite ways to enter the world by being born as a baby.
Because of that one day everything as we knew it has changed, our calendars reflect it, the way we date years is surrounded around that one day.
We celebrate Chrsitimas each year because the mighty and glorious God of the universe humbled himself to be born of a woman and to be a vulnerable baby boy.
The birth of Jesus is important for so many reasons, but one reason is because Christ truly identified himself with his children.
The sacrifice of Christ is sufficient for all who believe in Him because he was born as a baby, grew as a teenager, and lived as an adult in perfect obedience to God the Father on our behalf.
So, rejoice in your birth, knowing its not arbitrary but a beautiful reflection of God's redemptive plan.

However, the act of being born of a woman is not enough to save us or to bring us into perfect relationship with God.
When babies are born they are a fresh slate...we are unaware of their personalities, characteristics, and gifts. Although they may be predisposed to certain family sin, we don't know who they are or what they will struggle with. As they grow they are shaped and molded by their family into the mature adult they become.
Birthdays matter because they reflect the greater birth, the new birth that happens through the work of the Holy Spirit. In this birth we are washed white as snow and our sins are remembered so more.
As we grow in the knowledge of Christ and as he draws us nearer to him we are shaped by Jesus into our final maturity we will experience in eternity.

4. we look forward to the everlasting celebration....

why party on birthdays? Cause we are celebrating life.... and why not add a little cake to the mix?
But really, we gather together with our friends and family, the ones we love the most, and celebrate someones life. We literally have a party to celebrate life.
In heaven, we will be gathered together with our family, our brothers and sisters in Christ,  and celebrate everlasting life with our Lord and Savior.
So, birthdays matter because they give us a longing for the eternal celebration of life to come...

Revelation 19:1-2

After this I heard what sounded like the roar of a great multitude in heaven shouting:“Hallelujah!Salvation and glory and power belong to our God, for true and just are his judgments.He has condemned the great prostitute who corrupted the earth by her adulteries.He has avenged on her the blood of his servants.”

5. we are not promised the next one...

everyone says it..... "live for today" "carpe diem"
i want to leave you with Psalm 90, which is written by Moses, a man of God.
after traveling in the desert with the grumbling israelites for 40 years, i think Moses might know a thing or two about the fragility of life...
Birthdays matter because we get the opportunity to reflect on, praise, and thank God for the unconditional grace he has given us for the past ___ years. We pray for more, but we know our days are limited. He brought us up from dust, breathed life into us, and out of his goodness gives us many days of life.

Psalm 90...

 Lord, you have been our dwelling place

in all generations.

 Before the mountains were brought forth,

or ever you had formed the earth and the world,

from everlasting to everlasting you are God.

 You return man to dust

and say, “Return, O children of man!”

 For a thousand years in your sight

are but as yesterday when it is past,

or as a watch in the night.

 You sweep them away as with a flood; they are like a dream,

like grass that is renewed in the morning:

 in the morning it flourishes and is renewed;

in the evening it fades and withers.

 For we are brought to an end by your anger;

by your wrath we are dismayed.

 You have set our iniquities before you,

our secret sins in the light of your presence.

 For all our days pass away under your wrath;

we bring our years to an end like a sigh.

 The years of our life are seventy,

or even by reason of strength eighty;

yet their span is but toil and trouble;

they are soon gone, and we fly away.

 Who considers the power of your anger,

and your wrath according to the fear of you?

 So teach us to number our days

that we may get a heart of wisdom.

 Return, O Lord! How long?

Have pity on your servants!

 Satisfy us in the morning with your steadfast love,

that we may rejoice and be glad all our days.

 Make us glad for as many days as you have afflicted us,

and for as many years as we have seen evil.

 Let your work be shown to your servants,

and your glorious power to their children.

 Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us,

and establish the work of our hands upon us;

yes, establish the work of our hands!