Note: This post was also written by Shes. Her birthday is in November, but I was just able to post her blog now. Happy Belated Birthday Shes!

It is my birthday! 

Time to celebrate. Today, I celebrate my journey, not the happy events but the pain. I will celebrate the reality that it hasn’t been easy and I hurt, but also that I am alive and able to celebrate the Lord who gives life and joy in the middle of the pain.  I choose to embrace the pain while praising the One who is still in control, who whispers His love in the darkness.

For those who don’t know me, here is a little bit of my story: I was born in Guatemala with a genetic disorder called Crouzon syndrome, a premature fusion of the fibrous joints in the skull, affecting the normal growth and development of the skull and face. This alteration, without medical intervention, causes brain damage leading to disabilities, such as lost vision, intellectual disability, and the inability to walk. At the age of five, I began a long journey of twelve surgeries and different medical procedures. I learned to ignore pain, especially emotional pain, that led me to severe depression a couple of years ago. I sought the appropriate help. 

It is easy to celebrate the happy moments and the accomplishments but not the pain and dark moments, especially when I am still going through pain. I’m not celebrating pain itself; I celebrate pain because it represents connection, intimacy, and love with and from God. During each one of my surgeries and in the middle of deep depression, the Lord has been there to hold me. I celebrate that I have a God who hears, a God who answers,  and a God who knows I am in pain. 

No matter where you are, choose to celebrate. Celebrate that He is holding you, too. And when it hurts so bad that you can not breath, know that that, too, shall pass, the joy WILL come, and HE WILL NOT let go.