Are you living your life to its fullest?
The seasons of our lives seem to be dictated by major milestones that occur during that time.
Some of us are in the season of exploration as we leave our homes and start college; others are in the season of settling down and creating a home for a family to grow; and yet others are in the season of retirement and creating a new life, a different pace from the last 30 or 40 years.
As we age, we experience different seasons. How we experience those seasons determines how we will thrive in or just barely survive them. What season of life are you in? Are you enjoying this season? Are you living your life to the fullest?
Take our friend Joe. He started to believe that in this season of his life, he was being overlooked. He started to believe that God forgot about him and favored Declan over him. He limited his ability to see God at work in his life. He allowed his confession to agree with his senses instead of his faith. He allowed his current situation to determine his belief in God and God’s plan for his life. A younger, hipper kid with new ideas was being elevated to positions of influence that Joe once held. Joe thought that his latter years would be better than his former years (Haggai 2:9); but with each new day, that belief lost its value and was now only a distant dream.
In each season of our lives we can choose to live with a purpose or we can choose to live in the pain of our circumstance. Joe’s daily walk moved from waking up with joy in his heart and a passion to boldly pursue God’s plan for his life to waking up with fear about change and anger in his heart. He became a disgruntled Mr. Wilson. You know — Mr. Wilson from Dennis the Menace. Mr. Wilson was always yelling at that seemingly out of control, always enthusiastic, over-the-top extrovert Dennis. He just couldn’t understand why this kid, a kid who he explicitly tells to stay out of his yard, keeps coming back and getting in his way. He just wanted to live his retired life quietly and at peace. In many ways, Joe felt the same way about Declan. Declan was disrupting his plan that he had to finish his career and enter the next season of his life. I wonder if Joe saw Declan as an opportunity to leave a legacy rather than a hindrance to his future plans or a reminder of what he failed to do, would he feel the same way?
On Sunday, Nov. 6, Pastor Rich Nathan of Vineyard Columbus continued his series, “The Journey of Faith.” In this series, he is exploring the life of Abram, known to most of us as Abraham. In Genesis, God instructs Abram to leave his homeland and journey to the Promised Land. Several years later and after many twists and turns (because of Abram’s choices, not God’s direction), Abram and his wife Sarai (soon to be known as Sarah) are nearing what they believe to be the “winter” of their lives. But even in this season, God reveals that he still has a plan and a purpose for them that is yet to be fulfilled. He tells Abram that he will be the father of many nations. More than a decade passes since the promise. Sarai is beyond childbearing years and fears that if Abram does not have a child, he will not be the father of many nations as God has promised. Well-intentioned but lacking all faith in God’s plan, Sarai gives her servant Hagar to Abram so that he can have a child. Hagar gives birth to Ishmael.
Thinking that their plan was better than God’s, Sarai and Abram create more problems than they originally had. Sarai is now jealous of Hagar and begins to treat her poorly and casts her out into the dessert. Even though God saw what they had done, He eventually (still even more years later) gave Abram now Abraham and Sarai now Sarah a son, Isaac. (Read Genesis 14-18 to read Abraham’s Journey of Faith).
Why is this story relevant to our discussion of Joe and Declan? Well, Joe had his mind set that God had forgotten him. He had his mind set that his plans to retire the way that he wanted to were now ruined. He had a mindset that his latter days will not be better than his former days. My friends, God has a plan for you. The promises he has for you are not forgotten. He is strategic in his timing and in what season of life he will give them to you. He must be trusted. You must believe.
To me, Declan was Joe’s opportunity to live far past his life here on earth. Joe didn’t even realize his impact on Declan. He was so caught up in what he didn’t have (according to his plan) that he missed out on what God gave him. Hmmm. Have you ever done that? Been so caught up in what you lost or didn’t have that you missed out on what God gave you? And maybe you chose to take care of it yourself because you thought God forgot about you? Do you have an Ishmael because you refused to wait for your Isaac?
Friends, no matter what season of life you are in, God has you. He is there walking with you and carrying you through the good and the bad. I challenge you to give God this season of your life and see just how good He really is. The journey of faith is not always an easy one; but if you stay the course, it will pay off in the end.
Gina Jones is a former resident of Fayette County, now living in Columbus, Ohio. She serves multiple communities as an advocate, educator and leader. Follow Gina on Twitter @professorgmarie.