FOUR DECADES: FOUR + ONE LESSONS

Happy New Year, my dear friends. Last year when I turned 40, I thought about sharing with my younger friends a life lesson for each year I’ve lived. But my wife convinced me that no one would read such a long post. Well, in a few hours I will turn 41, but this time I decided to choose only four principles of the many lessons that life has taught me during the four decades that God has granted me. I decided to add a fifth lesson that I hope I will not forget now that I have officially started my journey towards the fifth decade of my existence. After much reflection and prayer, these are the five lessons I decided to share with you:

1.     It is a great blessing that God does not grant us everything we ask or want. When I look back and think of all the frustrated projects, all the closed doors, and the many prayers that were not answered in the way I expected, I can only exclaim Hallelujah! I confirm that God is too wise to give us everything we ask for, and too good to deny us what we really need. God sees the whole picture, we don’t.

2.     One of the most foolish way to waste our lives is by focusing our actions, activities and projects on trying impress, avenge or compete with others. In most cases, the people we compete with, or try to impress are people we don’t like us. Why should we devote so much emotional energy to these people when the most important thing is to collaborate with God's plan for our lives? When we focus on our "enemies" or "competitors," we neglect the people who are really important in our lives, or worse - we neglect the Creator's purpose for us.

3.     We should never allow Christians to lead us away from Christ. I have met many people who have turned away from Christ, or who have not surrendered their lives to Him because of the bad testimony of some Christians. That is a very human reaction, but it’s not a wise one. Besides, it is even unfair. It is true that the followers of Christ are called to represent the Lord Jesus, but many times they fail to do so. It is not right for you to reject your Savior or to turn away from Him because of what other sinners have done or have failed to do. There are some who separate from the body of believers, but without the intention of turning away from God. These people soon discover that one cannot (in the biblical sense) live the Christian life by themselves. We need others and others need us to stay and grow in Christ. Do not let Christians drive you away from Christ. Remember that no professional, academic, social or material success can ever satisfy the spiritual thirst that only the Savior can quench. It is impossible to experience the present life fully and receive eternal life without an intimate communion with Him.

4.     In most cases, the inclinations of the heart and the desires of the body lead us to the wrong destination. Contrary to what popular culture teaches through novels, music, and movies, experience teaches that in real life those who make the feelings of their hearts and the desires of their bodies the supreme guide of their lives enjoy (sometimes) the moment, but in the long run they have to pay a very high price. It seems to me that most of us are aware that the requests of the body and the heart are in conflict with what we know to be right. Although God is always willing to forgive us, the consequences of our foolish decisions pursue us for a long time. Do not be afraid to submit your impulses, emotions and instincts to God. Far from reducing your happiness, walking in the ways of the LORD brings true joy.

5.     God's plan for our lives is written with pencil, not with indelible ink. God wants to spend eternity with you in his coming Kingdom, but he also has a plan for your present life and is willing to reveal his purposes in different ways. As illustrated by Joseph's story, neither the most powerful enemy nor the most adverse circumstances can prevent the fulfillment of God's plan for you. There is only one person who can prevent the divine purpose from being fulfilled in your life: yourself. God wrote your destiny in bold letters, but he did not write it in indelible ink, but with pencil. That is, God desires the best for you, but He does not take away your freedom of choice. Through disobedience and rebellion you can erase the plan He designed for you; but you also have the opportunity to collaborate with your Creator to fulfill that plan. This is possible when you are willing to submit every dimension of your life to his lordship.

As the saying goes, "Any fool can learn from his own mistakes, but only the wise have the ability to learn from mistakes of other people." I wrote this reflection mainly with the younger readers in mind. If you are still young, you have two options: (a) you can wait until you turn 40 to learn these lessons on your own, or (b) you can learn from those who have already learned them through serious mistakes and suffering. What do you choose? I pray that you will use your God-given intelligence to choose wisely.

Aneury Vargas,

AIIAS, Cavite, Philippines

January 12, 2017