Thursday, November 29, 2007
Monday, November 26, 2007
Monday, November 12, 2007
Aging Gracefully
Job 11:16-17 For thou shalt forget thy misery; Thou shalt remember it as waters that are passed away, And thy life shall be clearer than the noonday; Though there be darkness, it shall be as the morning.
There is psychological age which is dependent on your attitude. If you have the attitude that you get better as you grow older in every way – physically, emotionally, spiritually and socially, then you will age in a much more graceful manner. So this is what studies tell us. How about you? Do you feel your age? Are you content with your age? Is your life now clearer than the noonday in retrospect? Are you comfortable in your skin so to speak?
There does come one thing for certain with age and that is wisdom. We have by head knowledge or by personal experience so much more soundness to offer others. Memory is also kinder to us as we look upon events that unfolded in our life with the safety of distance now. We have reason to rejoice even if our body's are having difficulties staying ahead of the aging process. God has truly given us grace and we display well.
If we refuse to look at aging as a universal disease punishing us, but as a time instead for God to make us shine with the qualities that only our age group can display, and if we rate ourselves high in the brain power area, we most likely knock off quite a few years on our chronological age. We might even delight to boast that number to others because we know that we have aged in a graceful manner. Even if our eyesight is no longer clear, our vision of a life lived well is as if we are still in the noonday of our life.
If your psychological age is not where you would like it to be, work on that area. It sure is worth your effort. Keep active as you can, especially with mentally stimulating activities like conversations, reading, even puzzles. Learn something new every day if you can. Challenge a faulty thinking within yourself. Take the time to smell a flower, pat a child on the head, or develop an interest in something you have never attempted before. Do something to get the pleasure nodules within yourself a chance to realize how good and precious life is. Take time to rejoice this day knowing that God rejoices in you.
There is psychological age which is dependent on your attitude. If you have the attitude that you get better as you grow older in every way – physically, emotionally, spiritually and socially, then you will age in a much more graceful manner. So this is what studies tell us. How about you? Do you feel your age? Are you content with your age? Is your life now clearer than the noonday in retrospect? Are you comfortable in your skin so to speak?
There does come one thing for certain with age and that is wisdom. We have by head knowledge or by personal experience so much more soundness to offer others. Memory is also kinder to us as we look upon events that unfolded in our life with the safety of distance now. We have reason to rejoice even if our body's are having difficulties staying ahead of the aging process. God has truly given us grace and we display well.
If we refuse to look at aging as a universal disease punishing us, but as a time instead for God to make us shine with the qualities that only our age group can display, and if we rate ourselves high in the brain power area, we most likely knock off quite a few years on our chronological age. We might even delight to boast that number to others because we know that we have aged in a graceful manner. Even if our eyesight is no longer clear, our vision of a life lived well is as if we are still in the noonday of our life.
If your psychological age is not where you would like it to be, work on that area. It sure is worth your effort. Keep active as you can, especially with mentally stimulating activities like conversations, reading, even puzzles. Learn something new every day if you can. Challenge a faulty thinking within yourself. Take the time to smell a flower, pat a child on the head, or develop an interest in something you have never attempted before. Do something to get the pleasure nodules within yourself a chance to realize how good and precious life is. Take time to rejoice this day knowing that God rejoices in you.
Monday, November 5, 2007
Stepping Aside
Joh 3:30 He [Jesus] must become more important, while I become less important.
These words were spoken by John the Baptist shortly before the time of his death. He knew that the fame that he had achieved would be coming to an end. He knew that instead of focus on him and his words, Jesus must be more honored. I believe he had a glimpse that his life might end soon, so that the Lord would be focal in all those that had heard the Good News through him.
John the Baptist led a purposeful life. He had accomplished those things God had sent him to do. He was preparing to decrease, as such as many of us in the last quarter of our lives our doing also. But have we accomplished the works that God has so desired for us to do? Have we proclaimed the name of Jesus to others and prepared the way for others to believe through us? These are the works that God desires: That His Son Christ be glorified. This is now the season of decrease in our life that Christ's life might increase. Can we rest now that we have influence others to believe in the Lord? Or do we yet have that to do in our lives? Because we are old, or frail, or past our prime does not mean that our opportunity to do good and to lift up the name of Jesus is finished. It just means that we focus on less of ourselves and more of God as we prepare to finish the course that God has set out for us.
In the Book of Revelation (14:13) it proclaims that our works do follow us even after our earthly lives have come to an end. This is a perfect display of John the Baptist. This is the works that will follow us. This is the legacy that we can leave behind. This is the accomplishing of the things God so desired to do in our lives.
If we have not yet decreased, ceasing to talk more of ourselves, rather than of Jesus, then we still have a course to finish. We can use this time of life to proclaim the Good News. And people will always remember that about you. I'll always remember when I was a child the neighbors who asked my parents if they could take me to Sunday School each week. They didn't ask my parents to join a neighborhood watch or a Parent Teacher association. They didn't ask them if they would like to go out together to dinner once a week or play cards on Friday night. The life they lived was to proclaim Jesus. To make Him of more importance. They accomplished God's will in their life. Their works do follow them as they allowed Jesus to be more important than them. I still remember their kindness even when all the other neighbors have been forgotten by me.
Have you done the same? Are you preparing for your good works to follow you? What we all have now is time on our hands. Let us use it to glorify God! Remember to decrease so that Jesus might increase. You will be most blessed as you make it a practice to step-up for Jesus as you step aside. Do something of eternal value beginning this week.
These words were spoken by John the Baptist shortly before the time of his death. He knew that the fame that he had achieved would be coming to an end. He knew that instead of focus on him and his words, Jesus must be more honored. I believe he had a glimpse that his life might end soon, so that the Lord would be focal in all those that had heard the Good News through him.
John the Baptist led a purposeful life. He had accomplished those things God had sent him to do. He was preparing to decrease, as such as many of us in the last quarter of our lives our doing also. But have we accomplished the works that God has so desired for us to do? Have we proclaimed the name of Jesus to others and prepared the way for others to believe through us? These are the works that God desires: That His Son Christ be glorified. This is now the season of decrease in our life that Christ's life might increase. Can we rest now that we have influence others to believe in the Lord? Or do we yet have that to do in our lives? Because we are old, or frail, or past our prime does not mean that our opportunity to do good and to lift up the name of Jesus is finished. It just means that we focus on less of ourselves and more of God as we prepare to finish the course that God has set out for us.
In the Book of Revelation (14:13) it proclaims that our works do follow us even after our earthly lives have come to an end. This is a perfect display of John the Baptist. This is the works that will follow us. This is the legacy that we can leave behind. This is the accomplishing of the things God so desired to do in our lives.
If we have not yet decreased, ceasing to talk more of ourselves, rather than of Jesus, then we still have a course to finish. We can use this time of life to proclaim the Good News. And people will always remember that about you. I'll always remember when I was a child the neighbors who asked my parents if they could take me to Sunday School each week. They didn't ask my parents to join a neighborhood watch or a Parent Teacher association. They didn't ask them if they would like to go out together to dinner once a week or play cards on Friday night. The life they lived was to proclaim Jesus. To make Him of more importance. They accomplished God's will in their life. Their works do follow them as they allowed Jesus to be more important than them. I still remember their kindness even when all the other neighbors have been forgotten by me.
Have you done the same? Are you preparing for your good works to follow you? What we all have now is time on our hands. Let us use it to glorify God! Remember to decrease so that Jesus might increase. You will be most blessed as you make it a practice to step-up for Jesus as you step aside. Do something of eternal value beginning this week.
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