Happy Birthday my sweet daughter!!!

At the age of 19 I had been married 6 months and 3 months pregnant with our first child. Oh my how the time flys!

Looking at our daughter...our 4th child and second daughter...she is such a beautiful girl inside and out. Today she is 19 and in no way near ready to be married or have a child. But I have faith that God has a great plan for her. She was the easiest baby out of all of our children...with 4 kids under the age of 5 God knew I needed her to be easy. She loves to make others laugh and finds joy in helping others. She has such a heart for the needy and the poor...that she jumps at every opportunity to serve. As a child she always said she wanted to be a missionary when she grew up. This summer I hope she has the opportunity to go on the short term mission trip to Guatemala...maybe this will pave the way for long term missions.

My dear sweet Sarah...I can not began to tell you how blessed I am to have you for a daughter. Your tender heart towards others has been an inspiration to my own heart. Who would have thought 19 years ago in Memphis ,Tennessee that this little bald headed easy going little girl would grow up to have such a servants heart? I pray that God will continue leading you down the very path that He has planned. That you will continue to seek Him as your source of strength and wisdom as you prepare for your future. I pray that your heart becomes so lost in God... that your future husband has to seek God in order to find you...may this next year bring you closer to your maker than you ever thought possible! For the day when He calls your name...I pray your ears are tuned to the one who made you in His image.

Happy Birthday Sarah,
I love you,

MOM

He knows my name...

I know when we had our first child...we were looking through all the name books for months! What a responsibility that is...and we have had the honor of repeating this 9 times...naming someone who will carry that name for the rest of their lives. A name that God will use when he calls...A name that will hopefully one day be written in the Lambs Book of Life! When naming our children, my first consideration was the combination of the first, middle and last name. How does it sound all together? Will he or she be teased? What is the meaning of the said name ? But the one thing that really stood out to me was...this is the name that my Lord has known before they were even a thought...a name that He will use one day to call them into His presence!

Have you ever thought what you would do if you meet someone with your same first and last name? I know when I meet someone with the same first name I feel somewhat of a connection. Our names are important ...they have meaning. Your name says a little something about you...just look up the meaning of your name. God knew our names before we were conceived! He had a purpose for our chosen name. I am so guilty of hearing a name and thinking...What were they thinking? God knew! He knows each and every name....no matter how many there may be. He knows us individually!

My husband recently did an experiment on Facebook....he friended all the people listed on Facebook with the same name as himself. At first I thought this was weird to be friending people he didn't know. But as I have seen the response and postings to his Facebook wall... it no longer seems strange. It's really interesting to see so many people with the same name. I laugh when I read his wall on Facebook...it kind of looks as though he's talking to himself! LOL!

If God knows me by name...how does he keep all the Karen Holcombes straight?

God knows my name...He knows the very number of hairs on my head. One day He will call my name...how many Karen Holcombes will come running? It will be exciting to see how many different mes there will be on that day!