Reflecting As We Celebrate A Milestone

Last Wednesday I turned fifty and today is my wife’s birthday. There is only a four-day difference. We received a lot of birthday wishes through phone calls, emails, cards and text messages from many of you, as well as from out-of-state friends and from other countries. Some wrote encouraging words and Bible verses while others offered prayers. It is good to reflect as you celebrate a milestone.
 
Every now and then and at least once a year, my wife and I will do a life assessment. To us, it’s not just a resolution for New Year’s, but we really look back and evaluate our marriage life, our relationship, our spiritual life with God, our family time with our children, how we manage our money, our diet, and how we take care of our body. We also evaluate our ministry, the church, about raising leaders, and much more. We do this several times a year because we don’t want to wait for too long to make a course adjustment whenever it is needed.
 
To God be the glory. Through failures and challenges, hard times and tribulations — we thank God that He uses us, the imperfect vessels, to accomplish His perfect plans (1 Cor.1:26-28). Sometimes we are not patient enough with ourselves, but our Heavenly Father always lifts our hands up and helps us rise again. You may think it is easy because we are pastors. No, not at all. It’s not because we are pastors, but it’s because we have learned to obey Him day-by-day.
 
What do you mean? Is it difficult to obey God? What do you mean to obey Him day-by-day? How can you do that? Well, it is simple. As I have shared many times in my Sunday sermons — Jesus has done all the difficult, the tough, and the impossible already. He left us with just the simple thing to do: to obey Him.
 
When we were just married for several months, I learned that if I made a mistake and said sorry to Joyce, she immediately forgave me within a few minutes as if nothing happened. On the other hand, if she made a mistake and said sorry to me, I forgave her all right — but I kept it in my heart for days (Mt.6:44). If she did something that would trigger me again, I exploded. As I humbled myself and asked God to change me, I became a much more patient husband and father.
 
We have also learned to give thanks in every season of life (1 Thes.5:18). It is hard to give thanks to the Lord when your season is dark and cold, but we choose to command ourselves to praise Him and give thanks. That’s why there is a lot of laughter in our house (Prov.17:22). If you know there are many challenges out there, why not make your own home as a house of refuge with the Lord as your Rock (Ps.144:2).
 
There are many more things that we reflect on as we reached fifty; we want to also encourage you to reflect upon your life and adjust it to the living Word of God. You will benefit from Him.