The Wisdom of Ages

Aging is such a strange thing.  We observe it so clearly in our youth and hardly recognize it at all as we experience it in real time. My stiff joints, spotty memory and lined skin is shocking at times but, for all intents and purposes, my brain still functions as if I were twenty something.  I catch myself struggling with many of the same insecurities and concerns as I did decades ago and wonder when, or if, those will ever be completely silenced.  But there is a beautiful side to growing older…Perspective. 

Nothing seems as critical or permanent as it once did.   

Life has taught me that everything has an expiration date – both good and bad.  Learning to live in the now truly is a gift when I recognize God’s presence in it all. Every joy becomes more deserving of my attention and gratitude as I remember each one is a gift from His hand. Every sorrow deepens my longing for Him, His beauty and my homeland while also stirring the desire that more people know the way there. Both have taught me that heaven isn’t a place in the clouds. It’s literally a breath away. A heartbeat away. There are those rare moments when earth and heaven overlap for just a blink of an eye. A thin place in time when you recognize the beauty of God in this world, and you know it’s only the slightest taste of what’s to come. 

When you “feel” a lost loved one’s presence. 

When a newborn focuses on you for the first time, and you see eternity in their eyes. 

When you hold someone’s hand as they take their last breath and realize they are in the Lord’s presence. 

When you stand on a mountain staring at the beauty and grandeur of God’s creation. 

When a hush of silence descends over a room of worshippers because their words are insufficient in the presence of God’s glory. 

The moments are as unique as you and I and rarely as grand as we expect.  They’re simply moments when God reaches across the veil and gives us a taste of home. A perspective of what will last beyond our years.

That perspective also comes with the ironic realization that a have a lot of knowledge yet know very little. Youth tends to come with energy and the certainty that we have things figured out. The world needs both, and we need each other. The longer I live, the less confident I am that I have anything to offer; so, my daughters’ encouragement to step into the continued call of God on my life is a gift. I hope my perspective is a gift that offers them confidence that God will get them through any storm they face

Their energy keeps me moving forward while my more relaxed pace keeps them grounded. Slowing down has become a spiritual practice for me because, even in my 50s, I have a propensity for speed.  The ancient way of faith is to walk, to pay attention, to breathe slowly and to watch expectantly.   To talk with God constantly and to fight my natural tendency toward carrying my own burdens.  He is much more able to carry them. 

The road is not only long and difficult but also beautiful and precious.  Focusing on the wrong thing blinds me to the eternal gifts and moments that are along the way. My prayer is to spend the last half of my race with eyes on the finish line and a crowd of friends cheering one another along the way.  Both young and old. 

Jeremiah 6:16a “This is what the Lord says: ‘Stand by the roadways and look. Ask about the ancient paths, “Which is the way to what is good?” Then take it and find rest for yourselves.’