I recently
was part of a mission team comprised of 15 pastors from 4 different states
ranging in age from late 20’s to early 60’s.
I was the one at the end of the early 60’s curve. I share that to make a point later. We served churches that differed in
denomination, worship style and size. So
we were not only exposed to the different culture of the country we visited, we
had a chance to get acquainted with different cultures within our own mix of
various generations, worship and church experiences. I found it interesting how I, as the oldest
in the group, loved being ‘unplugged’ for much of the journey. I still
view the internet and social media primarily as an interruption in my
life and hope it is a fad that will pass in time.
I enjoyed
watching some of those ‘whipper-snappers’ desperately seeking any and every
opportunity to gain a Wi-Fi signal. One
of the young guys, who constantly seemed to have phone in hand seeking social
media connection, kept calling the team leader and lead translator by the wrong
names. It is funny how younger folks
often don’t connect well in conversation forgetting names of those sitting
across the table, because they have been so distracted by social media and how
us older guys who avoid social media in favor of personal converse with those
across the table still get the names wrong because we just are too old to
remember. I guess some of these things
just balance themselves in the natural order of life.
One of the
young guys did ask what I thought was an interesting question; “If you, at your
current age, could go back to give advice to yourself at age 35 what would you
say?” Wow, that got me thinking of all
the things I have experienced and learned since I was thirty-five. Would I have some great advice for that
guy? Then I was reminded of a poster I
have in my office concerning advice; “Wise men don’t need it! Fools won’t heed
it!” I began to realize that my 35 year
old self would probably tell this 61 year old me, in a respectful manner
(because we both had mothers who taught us manners); “Thanks for your advice
but that was your generation’s point of view.
We are going to be different!”
Sadly, many
our early thirties think that way.
However, as we get to our early sixties many of us realize that Solomon
was right when he wisely wrote, “What has been will be again, what has been
done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.” While we may have
new gadgets and toys than the previous generation we still essentially repeat
many of the same mistakes. We still seem
to be people who learn slowly and often by our own mistakes…if we learn.
So what
would I say to my 35 year old self? I
would not bore him with my experiences or advice. I would point him to another whose advice, as
a man in his early thirties, still carry life-changing meaning and eternal
truth. I would tell him to listen more
closely and follow the advice of Jesus more completely. In word and deed Jesus advised us to do as he
did by living each day doing what God placed him on this planet to do. This is the way to a fulfilled life with no
regrets. In fact he told us that his
coming was to give us a full and abundant life (John 10:10). He counsels us to place our desires, feelings
and personal agenda aside to be a servant.
He directs us to walk away from a lifestyle of submission to selfish
appetites, destructive thoughts and action to a life of purity, harmony and
love with God and fellowman.
By age 35 I
had already read the entire Bible and would recommend continual study and
reading. But, I would tell my 35 year old self to pay closer attention and
follow the teachings and lifestyle of that man also in his early thirties. All the necessary teachings and actions of
Jesus can be found in the books of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. One can easily learn and follow those
teachings by daily reading, meditating and applying what is revealed and
learned every day. Even my 35 year old
self, who struggled with math, could calculate that there are 89 total chapters
in those four books so reading only three chapters a day would allow one to
read all four gospels in a month. The
slow reading pace of my 35 year old self could read 3 chapters in less than 30
minutes. Missing 30 minutes of a TV show
will never rival what you gain by reading and internalizing the teachings of
Jesus for half an hour a day. After all,
I would say to my 35 year old self, those same Andy Griffith shows will still
be running when you are my age!
I would also
tell my 35 year old self that his memory will not be as sharp as he gets older
so it would be a good practice to read and re-read these truths so they become
ingrained as a lifestyle. A regular
practice of this pattern of reading would allow one to read them 12 times in a
year. By the time he is my age he will
have read the gospels over 300 times.
Wow, how that could change a life!
Well, we may
not be able to go back and give ourselves good advice or counsel but it is not
too late to follow the counsel of the one who still gives us eternal
guidance. Let’s see what he has to say
for today; hmmm, Matthew chapters one through three says…
