Recently, a friend turned 40, and I was reflecting on that season of my own life. I remember when I hit 40, wondering if most of my best years were behind me because I’d “passed my peak.” (Despite the fact that I knew our ultimate peaks are always ahead of us in a far better world, so we can NEVER pass them here!)
Little did I realize at age 40 that my most spiritually impactful years in this present life were still ahead of me. The same precious children we were raising were going off to college and would soon get married to our wonderful sons-in-law. Our daughters and their husbands would remain a major part of Nanci’s and my lives, and their future children, our grandchildren, would also become a vital part of us. We would be able to love them and coach them and encourage them and laugh with them and send them Scripture texts, and all the other things you do with grandkids. The oldest of our five grandsons got married last summer, and another is getting married this summer (both chose godly young women whom I adore!). I feel very connected to our daughters and sons-in-law and to each of our five grandsons, as well as to the church Nanci and I helped plant 49 years ago.
At 40, I had written only eight of my now 68 books, and nearly all of my most important books were still to be written. Some very deep and lasting friendships were still to be formed. Now at nearly 72, I am deeply grateful for all God has done in the last 32 years—even the painful things—and how He faithfully used both the joys and the suffering to refine Nanci’s character and mine. (He always knows best, even when it hurts, and sometimes it really does. As I write, four close friends have died in a five-week period, and I’m speaking at three memorial services in the next six weeks.)
The words “finish well“ mean more to me than they ever did, and I am more determined than ever to complete my race to the glory of God. Especially because I know that after the finish line, what awaits us is eternal goodness, glory, beauty, a restored earth, and a depth of relationship with God and each other beyond what we can imagine.
So I am daily seeking God‘s face and living in His grace and drawing near to Him. I’m also guarding my life against anything that would ruin or in any way diminish my heritage to my children and grandchildren and the people whose lives, by God‘s grace, I have been able to touch. I seek to live by these words: “He must increase and I must decrease” (John 3:30). And ironically, the greater His increase and the greater my decrease, the more joy there is!
My advice to anyone feeling unease about an upcoming “milestone” birthday is to cling to King Jesus, and if God has given you a spouse and children and perhaps even grandchildren, to love them well. Keep your focus on the kingdom of God, and remind yourself of these words: “Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it” (Proverbs 4:23). These words certainly apply just as much to single people. God cares deeply about the condition of our hearts, and guarding and cultivating them should be our top priority.
By God’s supernatural grace and empowerment, may we be able to say this at the end of our lives here—with all eternity yet in front of us, where we will at last never pass our peaks, having resurrected bodies and minds and enjoying abundant life on God’s New Earth, worshiping King Jesus:
“I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day” (2 Timothy 4:7-9).
