“To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment.” — Ralph Waldo Emerson

This morning’s post is built around the hard to grasp fact that, today, our first grandchild turns 14. David Henry Campbell was born in Connecticut on a Sunday morning in 2011. He immediately brought love, joy, hope and peace into this world and has grown into the most delightful young man we could have imagined.

I won’t embarrass David by saying how brilliant, creative, polite and thoughtful he is – but I can’t help myself! Besides, anyone would know just by spending a little time with him.

But I will mention how tall he has grown, shooting up significantly even since this summer. It’s not going to be long – as you can tell in the back-to-back with Rebekah – before he towers over his entire family.

One of David’s greatest gifts is the kindness and gentleness he shows – and most especially to Geoffrey. It is a beautiful thing to see David come alongside his little brother when he needs some encouragement and lifting up.

David seems to have, as philosopher Ralph Waldo Emerson advocated in the opening quote, a healthy and confident understanding of who he is, and that is a huge part of the following “Words from Grandaddy” on his 14th birthday.

Words for David:

David, I want that confidence and assurance in what is true to keep you from compromising the goodness and the light that are evidently such a natural part of who you are.

Emerson goes on to encourage guarding the beauty and the grace of our souls: “What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us,” he wrote.

You may not think about the fact of your baptism, David, but the young people your age who are going through confirmation class are talking about it a lot:

Listen to the Lord who created you,
    the one who formed you says,
“Do not be afraid, for I have ransomed you.
    I have called you by name; you are mine.
 When you go through deep waters,
    I will be with you.
When you go through rivers of difficulty,
    you will not drown… – Isaiah 43:1-2

Your baptism, David, reminds you that God has called you by name and that you belong to Jesus. Confirmation is when teenagers think about stuff like that, talk about it together, understand it a little more, and then make a commitment to anchor their lives in the truth and the power of God’s amazing love.

I am here to remind you that God’s light is already burning pretty brightly inside you. My prayer is that this light will also guide you through these teenage years – and anything is possible when you anchor your life in the truth and the power of God’s amazing love.

There may be, as Isaiah wrote, occasional “Rivers of Difficulty.” But you are not going to drown or be swept away, David; I believe that you are going to be a lifeguard instead.

“Do not be afraid, for I have ransomed you,” God says. “I have called you by name; you are mine.”

That is some wonderful promise! – GRANDADDY DEREK