The
rear view mirror in an automobile is relatively small and the
distance and objects for the backward look are not in the right
orientation. By contrast, the windshield for the view ahead is large
and panoramic. Both are necessary for driving perspective and for our
life perspective.
Looking
backward, the choices I recounted that I made in the past, even as
far back as childhood, largely determine the consequences and rewards
and blessings I'm experiencing now. From my current summit position,
it is time to look forward. There is still a “rest of the way”
whether it is one day or a decade.
As
King David meditated in the Psalms at the summit of his life when he
was advanced in years and declining in health, he stated the obvious:
“I have been young, now I am old....” He had experienced the
vigor of youth, the warrior strength of maturity, and now he was
suffering the weakness and decline of age. That is the destiny of
each person if he or she lives long enough.
Realistically we will
all struggle with the natural limitations of aging. There will be the
inevitable diminishing of physical and mental energy, the decline of
mortal faculties, and the termination of life on earth. I will
encounter a plethora of new choices that I've never had to make
before. Some choices may eventually be made for me as I lose my
independence. Nevertheless, at this very moment I still may have time
to prepare for abundant living on the summit. Or even learn how to
climb to greater heights on my summit. With aged Caleb in the Old
Testament story, I ask, as he did, for God to give me the challenge
of another mountain to climb. I anticipate singing on the summit
until, God willing, “the hills are alive with music”!
The
summit of a mountain isn’t usually a plateau. I don’t believe the
summit of my life is a place to settle or let down my guard. As I
look around my mountaintop, I see more peaks to climb in the mountain
range. My life is not yet spent. I’m still spending it, even if I
have only one day left.
If
I don’t keep growing, climbing, moving, I will slide backward.
Doctors say that this applies to both the aging body and mind. As
they say, you have to use it or you’ll lose it. If I don’t keep
my mind alert, it will deteriorate in the same way as my body will
for lack of movement. The latest medical research gives us some
previously unknown and unexpected good news. Even in advanced years
the neurons (nerve cells) in the brain can renew themselves and new
stem cells can grow! That’s not news to God. He created us with
that capacity and expects us to daily “be transformed by the
renewing of your mind” (Romans 12:2). Therefore, I want to push the
horizons of my mind and spirit further and remain on the cutting edge
of life. The more I stretch, the higher I can reach. I don’t want
to miss anything God planned for me.
Suddenly,
so it seems, I am the eldest in our extended family; I am the
“matriarch!” That role carries with it serious responsibility. I
am supposed to be wise by this time, and matriarchs should pass on
their godly wisdom. Some who reach mature calendar age unfortunately
become foolish instead. I am happy in my continuity role as the trunk
in our family tree, as the connection between the roots (our
heritage) and the branches (our children and grandchildren).
When I was a child, my paternal grandmother was the trunk and the
matriarch. I was a little branch, just a twig. Now I feel
honored to be the trunk, and I pray that I might be a strong one to
support and encourage our multiple branches as long as God gives me that opportunity.
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