Happy Birthday, Gladys!

This week I called Gladys. She is an incredible lady, a real example of someone who "walks the talk." In March she fell getting out of bed at night. There on the floor she prayed and asked the Lord to help her, and as she tells it, "He did and I got back up onto the bed and went to sleep. In the morning I was sore but I figured I bruised myself, and I could walk with the help of a walker." But walking became more painful and, sure enough, she'd been walking all week with a broken hip. After surgery for a hip replacement, a stay in the hospital and then rehab in the assisted living unit, Gladys was settling back into her apartment.

We shared news. Then Gladys asked for updates on my family members - my mother and "Peter's mother", my aunts, Shirley and Doris, my brothers, Bill and Paul. She is a genuine prayer warrior who's prayed for my brothers and me our whole lives, my aunts and mother as long as she's known them, and Pete's mom ever since she met Pete last summer. When Gladys prays things happen!

There's a special place in my heart for Gladys. She led my Daddy to the Lord when he was a teenager. And I am so thankful for her strong witness, faithfulness in prayer, and love for Jesus.

On May 1st Gladys will celebrate her 95th birthday with a brand new hip, a host of memories, and the gratitude of a whole slew of people who were impacted by her faith.

Happy Birthday, Gladys! You are loved.