A recent quote I heard says that, “Life is like a toilet roll the nearer you get to the end the quicker it goes”. How true this is! Having celebrated my special birthday I have taken each day following it to process my new status as officially middle aged (to some younger folks I am sure they would say positively elderly). In fact only this week Alan, my lovely husband who has his special birthday in 2wks whilst shopping, had a young teen refer to him as ‘that old man’! He was a little bit taken aback and was even a little sheepish when telling me. We did laugh at this; most people who are aging will tell you that although outside you look one age, inside you still feel young, at least we do.
Alan and I have four beautiful grown daughters, 2 of whom are now married. When they were growing up we were fortunate to have a video camera available and we definitely used it. We have hours of footage that we are now putting onto DVD. Watching these home movies has elicited every kind of emotion from sheer pride and joy, to the most poignant moments (footage of my beautiful mum and sister, both have died and left a very large hole in the lives of our family)
My girls have changed: This is of course what a healthy sign of growth is. My beautiful eldest girl Jen was a typical awkward and argumentative teen, she is married to a most lovely husband but I think I can guarantee if he had met Jen then he would have ran very quickly in the other direction. Thankfully Jen learnt all the skills required to ‘grow up’ and become a beautiful wife and full time leader in a church.
This growing process can at times be very painful as seen in the angst of the teenage years or during times of heartbreak and loss. ‘Grow up’ is something we say to our children when their behaviour is less than helpful or even destructive. We pray that our advice will be heeded and that at the right moment all our advice and teaching will fall into place. The Bible teaches us that in the same way we should be those who are ‘growing up’ ‘maturing’, learning from the experiences we go through. This never ends this journey of growing up. I am aging, my birth certificate tells me that, but I am also still growing and maturing in my faith and this is what excites me the most this journey of discovery where I am still a ‘beloved child’ a ‘daughter of the King’.
1 Peter 2
So clean house! Make a clean sweep of malice and pretence, envy and hurtful talk. You've had a taste of God. Now, like infants at the breast, drink deep of God's pure kindness. Then you'll grow up mature and whole in God.
(The Message)
1 Peter 2:1-3
Therefore, rid yourselves of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander of every kind. Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation, now that you have tasted that the Lord is good.
(New International Version)
