Fourteen

Destiny Hope @ 14

This week my daughter, Destiny, turned fourteen.  I would think that thirteen was the big year, kind of a teen right of passage, but fourteen seemed bigger to her.  She kept reminding me that she was going to be fourteen and when I look back on photos of her, she seems to be such a different person than just a couple years ago.  Everyone warns you that your children will grow-up so fast, but I don't know that we can ever fully prepare for it.

This year, Destiny declared that she thought it was the "best birthday ever"!  I love it when my kids declare "best" over any given day.  And when I asked her why, her response was priceless . . . "because I got to share Jesus".

Love Letter From God

Destiny's birthday morning dawned bright and too early.  We always do a special breakfast and gifts and at 6:00 in the morning she was sitting at the table ready for a "party"!  :-)  After a little celebration of her, she got ready for school and shared with us, that this year for her birthday she had asked Jesus for one person to share Him with that day.  The day before she had typed up a love letter from Father God:   http://www.fathersloveletter.com/
and distributed it through out her public school.  Kids were visibly touched and moved by this letter.  Then for her birthday she decided to give love notes away and she sat with Holy Spirit and wrote down the names of people that He highlighted and then a word from Him for each of them.  Then she passed them out as "gifts" on her birthday.  This also moved through the student body with a tender response.  The kids kept their notes and treasured them.  And God gave her the desire of her heart.  One of the students came to her and began asking her about her faith and she began to share with Him about Jesus along with those who were sitting around them.  They had a good talk about faith, prayer the Bible, etc.  Destiny was ecstatic that her prayer had been answered and she had been given a very real and tangible opportunity to share Christ.  So, after a day full of giving and a belly full of her favorite Indian food, she pronounced her birthday the BEST (and she has had some pretty fun one's previously).   Destiny also got to spend a little time this week with one of her favorite people, Ms. Melody, who babysat her since she was three and is like family to us.  Melody moved away to Arizona a few years back and we were delighted to find her in Phoenix and re-connect.

Destiny & Melody

The beginning of this year, Destiny had an encounter with Jesus that was pretty powerful and lasted a couple hours.  In this encounter she saw/felt God put His fire inside of her.  She is excited for this new year and looking forward to what God has on the horizon.