16: 25 and The Year of Delight

Gia and Cam, two of the most delightful people I will ever know. When you read this, know I love you both more than words can express.

Logan here.

Much has happened since I last posted, dear reader! America turned 250 years old and I turned 25! Last week was my birthday, and yes, I have been milking the “quarter of a century” thing. I have to, right? It’s simply too good! Well, at the time I started writing, eight days have passed since the best birthday I’ve ever had, and it’s high time I share what made it so…delightful. Sit back and let me unpack the beginning of what I’m affectionately calling, “The Year of Delight.”

I woke up on my birthday, July 10th, and checked my phone. Gia had been up bright and early, and already texted me, “Happy birthday to the love of my life!!!! Can’t wait to celebrate you today!!,” followed by this classic Spongebob scene (she gets me!). The sweetness only continued from there.

Below Spongebob, another text had come through: a PDF under the name Birthday Blog. That’s right, Gia surprised me with a blog! Her creative spirit shined through it all. She not only made it look like a Writer on Wheels post in terms of design and formatting, but also referenced my writing style, including the opening “Logan here,” and a list of adjectives from my friends and family to describe me. Officially titled Celebrating Someone We Delight In, she wonderfully articulated a timely message: I am deeply loved and delighted in “because of who I am in God and who He perfectly created me to be.”
The heart of Gia’s blog is yet another example of the way she is so intentional: a week prior, we heard an awesome sermon at church on God’s love through the story of the Prodigal Son (Thank you, Ray, for sharing what God put on your heart!). I shared with Gia that I agree with the truth of God’s love intellectually, and am quick to encourage other people through my writing and conversations, yet I myself struggle to live in that reality. She thus made it her mission to put that love on display through my birthday celebration.

Gia already knocked my birthday out of the park with the blog, but wait, there’s more! She brought me a coffee to start my day before I headed to breakfast with my dad and my uncle. (This was a bit of a surprise in itself, as I was supposed to go with my longtime friends Nathan and Val, but they had to head to the hospital the night before because Val was going into labor—and baby June and I now share a birthday!). After breakfast, Gia picked me up for day of adventuring around Austin for more things that bring me great joy: books, records and burritos. Finally, as day turned to evening, we headed back to my house, where I was told we’d simply be making a pit stop before going out to dinner. This was another sneaky deception, because, as I shook off my passenger princess stupor, I saw in my driveway more cars than usual and undersea decorations on the front door. Could it be?

We didn’t just step into my house, we found ourselves in Bikini Bottom, Spongebob-themed decor everywhere, with a bunch of my friends and family! Church friends, work friends, so many people who are very near and dear to me, all organized by Gia! Eventually, I look to my right and in my kitchen is my best friend, Cam, who I hadn’t seen in-person in a year! He and his mom made a special trip to celebrate me and they stayed through the next day! Every element of that day (and the weekend) was so special! When people ask me how my birthday was, I continually describe it as the best one I’ve ever had, and it truly was, from start to finish.

Last year, I posted a blog for my 24th birthday, in which I shared my hopes for 24, which focused on spontaneity. As for this year, I hadn’t settled on a goal or mission statement. That is, until Gia dropped this gem for me in her blog:

I wish I could explain to you just how much people love you. Not a perfect version of you that never sins or makes mistakes. The you that you are right now, have become over the past 25 years and the you that you will be in the next 25 years … My hope for you in this next year of your life is that you grow to see a little more of the truth in all of those words your friends and family have for you.

As I shared with her over text at the end of the weekend, that hope is already coming to fruition. The love I experienced and rested in all weekend was overwhelming and affirming. Gia, once again, I can’t thank you enough for all you made possible. I love you so, so much (like…A LOT!).

Some of you reading this may be thinking, We get it, dude, you had a great birthday and people really love you. How does that help us?

That is an excellent question, and to answer it, I’ll again point you to Jesus’ story of Prodigal Son, as told in Luke 15:11-32. The son practically threw away his inheritance and found himself alone, stripped of dignity, eaten up with shame. By the time he resolves to go back home, he lets that shame convince him he’s not worthy of the loving relationship he once had with his Father. However, that’s not how his father receives him at all. The mess of a son is embraced, met with radical love and is restored to his position as a beloved son. The son didn’t do anything to earn back his father’s love, it was freely and graciously given.

Jesus used this story to illustrate the love of God. As Ray’s sermon pointed out, if we accept the truth that God is love (1 John 4:16), then we can trust that everything He does flows from His perfect, holy, righteous, loving nature. He loves us because of who He is!

Keep in mind, God’s loving nature doesn’t negate the seriousness consequences of disobeying him. In Ray’s words, “God doesn’t simply overlook our sin or pretend it didn’t happen. Instead, Jesus bore our sin so that we could be fully restored to the Father.” The son made mistakes with the gift he was given and felt consequences. I make mistakes and fall short day after day. I don’t perfectly love God, Gia or anyone else, and even though I’m older now and growing into a better man, I will continue to fall short. In those moments, I have found myself brought low, not running towards God’s love first, rather avoiding Him entirely or trying to frantically pray away my sin. Ray articulated this struggle well, remarking that “the beloved often forget they are beloved.” Ephesians 2:4-5 states,

But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved… (Ephesians 2:4-5).

Gia, thank you for sharing that birthday mission God put on your heart. As I live out the rest of 25, I want to look back on it as my “Year of Delight,” growing into the truth that God is love and He delights in me, letting Him restore me to deeper relationship with Him and others. I implore you, dear reader, to trust that the Father is ready to embrace you and welcome you home. Isn’t that delightful?