As a kid, I hated it when my sister had her birthday. It meant nothing but girl parties, painted nails, princesses, and all of my little sister’s friends that I thought were annoying.
Now that we are all grown up, I don’t dread it anymore. Now I celebrate the sweet life of my sister who now has a daughter of her own and is making quite an impact on life. It was my sister’s birthday this week, and I thought I’d share a few things I’ve learned from the little sister I call “Nae Nae.”
Allow me to introduce you to Janae. She is an amazing woman of God, who has a passion for all she does. She is married to a great man (and childhood friend of mine), Micah. She is also the mother of a little girl who considers me her favorite uncle (I am sure of it).
1. Janae leads a relentless war on debt. She and Micah have resolved that debt is not something they want to live with. Debt was necessary for them to get through school, but they have made a conscience decision to get rid of it as fast as possible, post graduation. She makes every penny count, cutting coupons and corners to save what can be saved to pay off debt. They have budgeted wisely and stuck to it even when it is uncomfortable. The value of generosity Janae and Micah have (even when getting rid of debt) is a motivation for them to not owe anything to anyone. They want to be able to be more generous, so they are diligent now in order to have an even greater impact later.
2. Janae loves God first and family second. Janae’s love for God and His Word has always been evident. She loves Jesus and is diligent to walk with Him daily. Of course she loves her family too, but it’s God first, then family. She is a faithful wife and mom, but this comes in response to first being a faithful follower of Christ.
3. Janae gets what it means to submit to your husband. Most women hate the word “Submit” but that is because they don’t understand it. Janae gets it. When the Bible calls a woman to submit to her husband, it is a sweet posture of service, support, and stewardship. In the same way the Holy Spirit submits to God the Father’s will, so a wife is to give way to her husband. Janae gets this; she is in tune with Micah and serves God faithful by serving and walking through life with Micah steadily.
4. Janae makes everyone feel like they are the greatest person in the world. When you meet Janae, you can’t help but smile. She will make you feel like you are the only person on the planet that matters. Her laugh is hilarious and contagious. She cares deeply and finds joy in all situations. If you need to feel like a million bucks, go have coffee with my sister. She selflessly enjoys celebrating other’s uniqueness.
I love Janae, and I am proud to call her my sister. Here’s to another year of her life and another year of us learning to be more like Christ from her example.
