My labs are now twelve years old. They both have torn ACLs, which don’t seem to cause them any pain. It just makes them slower. They both have noticeable cataracts, especially Velvet who runs into things now quite frequently. But in this season of their lives, an amazing thing has happened. Their primary focus is no longer the squirrels to chase or the smells to investigate. They just want to be near me. That means when I go outside and call them, they come. Long gone are the days when they would lift their head to see if what I wanted was more important than what they’re doing. Gone are the days when they would disappear for a couple of hours, exploring who knows where. These days they poke around the barn and the trees close to the house, and then they take up their watchful positions on the front porch, content to be together.
This is not what I would really want for them. I miss those days when I could let them out and in 5 seconds they’d be out of sight. I miss the days when they were young and spry and full of youthful enthusiasm. But God is using them to teach me something again.
I can’t help but think about the young person who knows that perhaps they’re not making the best choice, that it’s not really the direction God would have them to go. But much like my younger labs, I was willing to postpone what was pleasing to God in lieu of chasing the equivalent of squirrels, my own idea of fun in those days. But as I get older and experience more problems and trouble, I find myself desiring just to be with God, in His word, thinking about His ways and what pleases Him.
I like Dan White’s article from December 2017 because it’s another analogy to express the same thing. We too often spend our time looking down, looking at our world, our agenda, our squirrels to chase. What we really need to do is to look up, focus on what pleases God, and seek to follow His direction for our lives, regardless of the troubles and sorrows.
This world is not our home. And we can’t live like it is. We can’t spend our time acting as if this is all there is., as if this were the goal. We are given this time, as a gift from God, to become His Bride, to be prepared for what comes next, and to share His light with the people around us. We can’t get so distracted by this life, with its pain and trouble, that our light grows dim. Or as Kent Hovind used to say, You can’t be “so earthly minded that you’re no heavenly good.”
Or perhaps you want it expressed in song:
Lift up your head. Redemption draweth nigh.
To the hills I’ll lift my eyes. Ah from whence shall come my help. My help comes from the LORD, maker of heaven and earth.
The turning of the calendar from 2019 to 2020 is not God’s calendar. But it is still another marker in the passage of time. It’s also a really good opportunity to evaluate where we are, where we’re going, and take some necessary steps to refocus our eyes on the Master. God can use all of what we’re experiencing in our education as disciples, in our purification as the Bride of Christ, in our sanctification as the people of God.
This is not what I would really want for them. I miss those days when I could let them out and in 5 seconds they’d be out of sight. I miss the days when they were young and spry and full of youthful enthusiasm. But God is using them to teach me something again.
I can’t help but think about the young person who knows that perhaps they’re not making the best choice, that it’s not really the direction God would have them to go. But much like my younger labs, I was willing to postpone what was pleasing to God in lieu of chasing the equivalent of squirrels, my own idea of fun in those days. But as I get older and experience more problems and trouble, I find myself desiring just to be with God, in His word, thinking about His ways and what pleases Him.
I like Dan White’s article from December 2017 because it’s another analogy to express the same thing. We too often spend our time looking down, looking at our world, our agenda, our squirrels to chase. What we really need to do is to look up, focus on what pleases God, and seek to follow His direction for our lives, regardless of the troubles and sorrows.
This world is not our home. And we can’t live like it is. We can’t spend our time acting as if this is all there is., as if this were the goal. We are given this time, as a gift from God, to become His Bride, to be prepared for what comes next, and to share His light with the people around us. We can’t get so distracted by this life, with its pain and trouble, that our light grows dim. Or as Kent Hovind used to say, You can’t be “so earthly minded that you’re no heavenly good.”
Or perhaps you want it expressed in song:
Lift up your head. Redemption draweth nigh.
To the hills I’ll lift my eyes. Ah from whence shall come my help. My help comes from the LORD, maker of heaven and earth.
The turning of the calendar from 2019 to 2020 is not God’s calendar. But it is still another marker in the passage of time. It’s also a really good opportunity to evaluate where we are, where we’re going, and take some necessary steps to refocus our eyes on the Master. God can use all of what we’re experiencing in our education as disciples, in our purification as the Bride of Christ, in our sanctification as the people of God.
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