I accepted an invitation last month to my brother Chip’s 70th birthday celebration and I’m so very glad I did. It included rare and wonderful hours with my sister Chelley and her family as we met up , then traveled together.

The gathering in the upper room of a brewery, on a sultry evening in St.Paul, MN, brings to mind the following lyrics from a little known song I haven’t heard for years:

Fathers who encourage and mothers who embrace, friends who listen carefully reveal God’s loving face.
Voices that are gentle, words that welcome home, meals that feed the body and the soul.
Honoring the family and cherishing each life. Strengthening the sacrament of husband and wife.
Sharing freely from our hearts, what little we may have, doing for today the best we can.
A single parent’s courage, a widow strong in grief, walking through the dark and doubt with hope and belief. (from Ordinary Holiness by Tim and Julie Smith)

My brother’s birthday gathering was made up of such people as are described above. Courageous, strong, hopeful people who see in my brother and his wife the same integrity I do. For me, it was a sacred gathering which I will long remember. A few hours set apart to celebrate seven decades of life on earth – a life full of the love for which we were made.

In a world where men are too often defined more by what they do than for who they are, my brother might be deemed unremarkable. But we know that the real measure of a man is not money or status or power. And my brother Chip’s life bears witness to the truth that a man’s integrity still matters most. Crowds exhaust him, yet there he stood, alongside his wife, sacrificing his own comfort so we could have the joy of celebrating him.

Evident to all who know him are his honesty and compassion. While he’ll never be famous for it, he’s every bit as kind, trustworthy, and unassuming as the acclaimed Fred Rogers. His whole family regards him with both respect and sincere affection, demonstrating that he’s the real deal.

With only a 15 month difference in our ages, our childhood memories differ so greatly that he once told me, “It appears we grew up in completely different families”. I’ve learned to know Chip, as an adult, mostly through his writing, which I’ve always admired. You can read his words here: http://ordering chaos.com

I’m so glad I got to be there to celebrate Chip’s birthday. I’ll end with this scripture; a favorite of his and mine.

He has shown you, O man, what is good;
    and what does the Lord require of you
but to do justice, and to love kindness,
    and to walk humbly with your God?
_{Micah 6:8}