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It's that day again. It's the day that marks another year of your life. That's cause for celebration. Maybe you're looking forward to being a year older, maybe not. Either way, it's your day, and that means it's special. You certainly aren't going to forget your own birthday. But your birthday isn't much fun if you have to celebrate it all by yourself. The real question is whether anyone else remembers. It doesn't always have to be presents and parties. A simple "Happy birthday!" at least lets you know other people are glad you're still here. Of course, friends and family will usually go out of their way to do something to let you know you're special to them, and it's those signs of love that really make the day something to look forward to. You can probably think of other big events that you and your family celebrate. My wife and I just bought a house, and I can tell you we'll be celebrating when we finally get moved in and settled. But, of all the people that might find a reason to celebrate a big event, Noah is probably near the top of the list. You might think Noah would mark his calendar to commemorate the day he came out of the ark. The entire rest of the world died—except for him. If that isn't a reason to celebrate, then I'm not sure what is. Noah's adventure had started quite a long time before this, back when God told him He was going to wipe out all life in the world. Everyone had become violent and selfish. No one respected God or listened to Him, no one except Noah. God was going to wipe out everything in the world except the eight people in Noah's family and a few of the animals. Thankfully, Noah trusted God and followed His instructions for building the ark and gathering the needed supplies. It is because Noah listened that the water, which meant death for everyone else, meant salvation for him. He trusted God and was not disappointed. Noah should have died with everyone else but was saved because, when God spoke, Noah listened and believed. So the great day came when the waters finally receded and the ark came to rest on the top of Mount Ararat. Noah opened the door and stepped out. He made a sacrifice to God in thanks for saving him as He had promised. God had already done plenty for Noah, but He had more in store. God then declared He would never again send a flood to wipe out all life. He made a covenant promise to Noah and to all creation that would stand forever. God simply said this time of judgment against sin is done. Neither Noah nor anyone else need offer anything to make it happen. God makes a promise, and all there is for us to do is trust Him. However, God wasn't quite done. As a way of signing His name to this covenant, God set a rainbow in the clouds. Now whenever the storms have passed, the rainbow comes out as a sign of God's promise. You might think it was pretty comforting for Noah to look up at the rainbow and remember that no more worldwide floods would be coming—and I'm sure it was. But the rainbow wasn't primarily for Noah. It was for God. God told Noah He put the rainbow there so He would see it and remember His promise to the world. As big an event as the flood was, God made it to be a prelude to an even bigger event: Baptism. In the account of the flood that we have here, there's a lot that tells us about Baptism. We are given God's promise of salvation as He saves us through the water that judges sin. Now when He looks at us, we are already judged and found innocent. There is nothing left in us to judge. We trust God to save, and He does as He REMEMBERING YOUR BIRTHDAY BY REV. DR. RICHARD DAVENPORT 6 Lutheran Life

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