The wonder of a child; the reality of being 46
I want to start today's blog with a passage from Matthew 18:3 (NIV)
And he [Jesus] said: "I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven."
I'm 46 years old. I've been sick for the last three days and I have a stupid ear infection A child's malady that has knocked me right on my butt. The cold I have doesn't help, either. All I want is a nap. I feel like a kid again.
I feel like a kid again in many ways, not just being ill today. I have a happy heart and the wonder at the world just like a child. I understand why Christians refer to this as being "Born Again". I feel like I have a brand new life. No, more than that, a brand new way of looking at life.
I spend a lot of time listening to the Christian radio station. I find a great deal of inspiration from the stories I hear on the radio and find it fascinating that just like so many others, I had to reach the lowest point in my life to find the most precious thing in the world. What is that?
God's love and the forgiveness of my sins through my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
As I progress in my new life, I find myself some days just standing in utter awe of the power that God wields just as subtly as a raindrop falls. I've seen the Father at work in my life, from just something so random as finding a piece of paper with an important message on it, to an e-mail from someone at just the right time, saying just the right thing. Not long ago, I would never have understood the significance of these seemingly random acts. By themselves, they probably mean nothing, but when you string them together, I can clearly see God at work. It makes me have the faith of a child.
A lot of people in my circumstance may ask themselves "Why me?". I don't have that luxury because I know exactly why. Actions have consequences and I've had to pay for mine. Because I found Christ, I read the Bible and understand that the bad is just God's way of correction. When you look at things from that point of view, then things aren't as bad as they seem. Out of every instance, a lesson has been learned to make me a better person.
That's the child's faith in me. I have faith that my heavenly Father is showing me in His way, and in His time what's best for me and I feel young and excited by the marvel of it all. I have peace that I have never in my lifetime known. I can't find the words to express the joy in my heart. I talk a lot about this in hope that you, too, dear reader, will come to know that feeling.
The reality of being 46 is just physical. Things hurt. I get a cold and I'm down for a week. All I want to do is sleep but when I'm done with this blog, I'm off to work. That's the reality of being 46. It's not all bad, though. I have a wealth of experience to draw from as I make new decisions. I just rely on someone else to help me make those decisions. Much like a child asks a parent, I turn to God for guidance. It's nice to know that I can consult Him and His infinite wisdom to make better choices. I think I'm on the right track.
I don't know if I'd be where I am today, feel the way I do if I hadn't seen first hand, God's influence not just in my life, but in the lives of others close to me. My dear wife got a little taste of this when the most random thing happened to her the other day. A dear friend of mine had an experience recently and the story of that just absolutely moved me beyond the words I could use to describe it. Like I said, we look for the big miracle. Sometimes, we miss the little ones that happen every day, like a close call on the freeway, or seeing something happen in your life that you identify with something that's going on in your life. God works in our lives and throughout the last year, I can see He's been trying to fix what I tried my best to mess up. It's odd that I find upon reflection that when I quit trying to run my life that my life started running pretty well on its own. Instead of doing something stupid like following my heart, now I lead it. I follow God's directions spelled out in the Bible for living and the blessings are multiplying for me every day.
I look at the world differently these days, like I'm looking at it through the eyes of a 10 year old, with the wisdom of being 46. The best way I can describe this feeling is to say this "If I knew then what I know now!" Well, I'm starting over and this time, I do know now what I didn't know then. This, my friends, is a great gift from God.
And he [Jesus] said: "I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven."
I'm 46 years old. I've been sick for the last three days and I have a stupid ear infection A child's malady that has knocked me right on my butt. The cold I have doesn't help, either. All I want is a nap. I feel like a kid again.
I feel like a kid again in many ways, not just being ill today. I have a happy heart and the wonder at the world just like a child. I understand why Christians refer to this as being "Born Again". I feel like I have a brand new life. No, more than that, a brand new way of looking at life.
I spend a lot of time listening to the Christian radio station. I find a great deal of inspiration from the stories I hear on the radio and find it fascinating that just like so many others, I had to reach the lowest point in my life to find the most precious thing in the world. What is that?
God's love and the forgiveness of my sins through my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
As I progress in my new life, I find myself some days just standing in utter awe of the power that God wields just as subtly as a raindrop falls. I've seen the Father at work in my life, from just something so random as finding a piece of paper with an important message on it, to an e-mail from someone at just the right time, saying just the right thing. Not long ago, I would never have understood the significance of these seemingly random acts. By themselves, they probably mean nothing, but when you string them together, I can clearly see God at work. It makes me have the faith of a child.
A lot of people in my circumstance may ask themselves "Why me?". I don't have that luxury because I know exactly why. Actions have consequences and I've had to pay for mine. Because I found Christ, I read the Bible and understand that the bad is just God's way of correction. When you look at things from that point of view, then things aren't as bad as they seem. Out of every instance, a lesson has been learned to make me a better person.
That's the child's faith in me. I have faith that my heavenly Father is showing me in His way, and in His time what's best for me and I feel young and excited by the marvel of it all. I have peace that I have never in my lifetime known. I can't find the words to express the joy in my heart. I talk a lot about this in hope that you, too, dear reader, will come to know that feeling.
The reality of being 46 is just physical. Things hurt. I get a cold and I'm down for a week. All I want to do is sleep but when I'm done with this blog, I'm off to work. That's the reality of being 46. It's not all bad, though. I have a wealth of experience to draw from as I make new decisions. I just rely on someone else to help me make those decisions. Much like a child asks a parent, I turn to God for guidance. It's nice to know that I can consult Him and His infinite wisdom to make better choices. I think I'm on the right track.
I don't know if I'd be where I am today, feel the way I do if I hadn't seen first hand, God's influence not just in my life, but in the lives of others close to me. My dear wife got a little taste of this when the most random thing happened to her the other day. A dear friend of mine had an experience recently and the story of that just absolutely moved me beyond the words I could use to describe it. Like I said, we look for the big miracle. Sometimes, we miss the little ones that happen every day, like a close call on the freeway, or seeing something happen in your life that you identify with something that's going on in your life. God works in our lives and throughout the last year, I can see He's been trying to fix what I tried my best to mess up. It's odd that I find upon reflection that when I quit trying to run my life that my life started running pretty well on its own. Instead of doing something stupid like following my heart, now I lead it. I follow God's directions spelled out in the Bible for living and the blessings are multiplying for me every day.
I look at the world differently these days, like I'm looking at it through the eyes of a 10 year old, with the wisdom of being 46. The best way I can describe this feeling is to say this "If I knew then what I know now!" Well, I'm starting over and this time, I do know now what I didn't know then. This, my friends, is a great gift from God.
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