When you hit the "Double Nickel" you have lots of rear view mirror reflections.
As a member of the Boomer Nation, spanning ten Presidents, and actually remembering the first ever Super Bowl, I have loads of 20/20 hindsight. Vietnam, Watergate, the OPEC oil embargo, civil rights marches and the assassinations of three prolific national icons (John, Bobby & Martin) are embedded in high school history textbooks...and in my memory. Since the 70's and shoulder length hair, global and personal history has multiplied like a YouTube video gone viral.
34 years married to the love of my life and five grown 'children' later, a few "Double Nickel" lessons learned:
- Don't take yourself so seriously. Lighten up! Wouldn't you rather people look forward to your walking into the room rather than dreading it? Quit crunching your eyebrows and make smiling more intentional. Scowling is harder on your face muscles and on others than you think! Choose to be joyful (a huge upgrade from happiness) and you will keep you and this life in proper perspective.
- Don't stop learning. Age does not necessarily equate to personal growth. If it takes 10,000 hours to become expert at your craft, be invested in yourself. Do whatever it takes to keep growing. Read! Study! Get coached up! I have learned the art of "reverse mentoring" through my young adult kids. Soak up all that you can for as long as you can from as many as you can.
- Live with a sense of your "timeline". The Bible says it like this; "All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be" (Psalm 139:16). Stay aware of your human-ness. The most precious currency that you have is time. There will be a conclusion to your life one day. Either forewarned or unexpected, your days on earth are numbered. We have been made to live forever by our Creator, and one day we will report to Him. That can and should be a great day, so live with a sense of accountability throughout your one and only life.
- Give suffering a chance. For most, life is the pursuit of increasing pleasure and reducing pain. Life is just not that neat. Stop complaining about injustice, unfairness and reversals. Suffering is a divine instrument used by God (not always induced by Him) to shape us into compassionate, unselfish and faith-based people. Even when you feel abandoned, the Heavenly Father is at work getting you ready for your big assignment. Apart from suffering, I would still be a card carrying Meist at 55!
- Trust God and leave a legacy. Life is bigger than you. If your "world" is you, your family, your interests, your accomplishments, and your net worth, you are missing out on the bigger picture. "For By His pleasure we are and were created" (Revelation 4:11). The Lord enjoyed making you and delights to lavish you with His kindnesses. "The Lord gives us everything to enjoy" says the Bible. Along your life journey people will at one time or another fail you, as you will them. You may not understand God's ways but you can trust His heart for you. I have learned, seen and can testify that He is absolutely faithful. I will leave my children all that I have materially, but that is not enough. Rather than leaving my mark on this world, I now care much more that my life points others to Him while I am enjoying Him face to face.
I like growing up! It has taken many years for God to be patient with me through my immaturity (and that is being nice about it). A great man once said, "I am what I am by the grace of God". While I am stil here, I am determined to become more than I am by that same grace.
