Like most of you, I have a thousand thoughts running through my head in a day....most are not worth mentioning, but this is a big year for me. This year I will turn 60. I never dreamed I would get this old this quickly! I knew it was coming, but as it draws closer I become more reflective. What could I have done differently? How could I have made better choices? Did I do all I could, all I should? If I were to do it all over again would I make the same mistakes?
None of those questions are of much use. I can't answer any of them with an answer that brings any help to my little brain, but they bounce around up there anyway. The one thing I do think about as I near the daunting age of 60 is something I read last fall. The author was describing the fact that we are in a time when there are few spiritual fathers. Men who are mature, walking with God and able to help those behind them take the leadership of the church and the world. That thought has been coming back to me often. Spiritual fathers....where are they? I see few men who, 1. qualify or 2. think they qualify, or 3. take the mantle of this identity if they do qualify. Where are the spiritual fathers leading the way for the Christian world? Showing the next generation how to live an authentic and honest Christian life? Where are the men of passion for God?
I know they are out there. I know many of them myself. I hope I can be one of them, but I don't think, if you asked them, they would describe themselves that way. Why not? If these mature men of faith do not lead the way then who will? So, let me throw out the challenge to my peers nearing this stage of life....are you willing to take on the identity of being a godly man, a leader and a spiritual father to the believers behind you? The next generation has to begin to lead the church. We need to help them and let them. Men, be the spiritual leaders of your family, church and generation and help the next generation to see what that looks like as they take the church into the years ahead.
Just a few thoughts I'm working through.....
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1 comment:
Brother,you and men like James are one of whom you spoke. You have been in my life and in the lives of others. You are being reproduced in me, and God will be glorified as a result. Thank you for all your prayers and counsel over the years. As we enter this new chapter in our lives, I look forward to what God will do in and thru' us. Know that you were a big part of that. May the Lord bless you with 60 more years!
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