Column by Bro. Terry Ivy
“For what is your life? It is even a vapor, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away.” (James 4;14) As another week comes and goes, I find myself reflecting about my life. This Friday, I enter my seventh decade of walking upon the shores of time. It seems I have spun around a couple of times and somehow, at the speed of light, managed to turn sixty.
Now, I am certainly not complaining. I know many who never got the chance to experience what advanced age feels like. Sometimes it seems I’m held together with duct tape and baling wire. But then again, I take heart by the comrades around me who feel the same.
Where did time go? It seems like yesterday that many of my childhood friends and I were young lads, acting the part of townspeople in the play, “The Tom Thumb Wedding.” A few more trips around the sun and we were in high school, engaging in undercover mischievousness—undercover because our life would have ended if our parents were aware of some of our shenanigans. But, by God’s grace, we survived. With the help of great parents, teachers and coaches, we managed to stop orbiting around the planet ‘Stupidity’ and land safely upon earth.
After a few more trips around the sun, we found ourselves married and rearing children. Our greatest prayers were that our children would not attempt some of the demented acts of rebellion we did at their age. The time flew by as we found ourselves so busy trying to make a living that, many times, we forgot to live. I call it the middle age curse. But through it all, we managed to have children that have their heads on straight.
Around the sun a few more times and the greatest title of all has been entrusted to us—grandfather! It seemed that once the dam was burst, that little monkeys began appearing at the rate of gray hair, each one claiming a unique piece of my heart as they reminded me of the innocence, tenderness, and honesty of youth. With only a simple smile and kiss on the cheek, these little wild Indians could melt the toughest of hearts.
Time marches on—for good or bad—it simply marches on. We have no part in deciding its speed or the events that will accompany it. However, we do have an integral part in determining the destination of our soul when ‘our time’ on earth ends. Through Christ, we never have to wonder where time will take us, for, as Paul said on Mars Hill, “In Him we live, move, and have our being.”
So, this week I’ll step into my sixties, looking back and looking forward. God’s grace has been overwhelming to this old soul. His mercies have been new every morning, and His love has been deeper than an ocean. Life is but a moment, like a blade of grass and vapor that fades quickly. But today, I thank God for the glorious gospel of salvation as I begin…Another Trip Around the Sun!
