On "Turning 30"

Determined...

As many of you know, I recently turned 30 years old...Yep 30! Now I know for some of you folks out there who feel like "30" was forever ago, you might be saying, "Shucks, you're just a young pup" and yet, there are others, who are much younger than myself , gloating in your youth and thinking , "Man, I thought JR was like 40!" Well for all of you out there, young and old, I would like to share what turning 3o means to me.

I had a professor in Seminary that taught about what he called the "age 30 transition" based on the ministry of Jesus starting at 30, during which time, a man turning 30 would evaluate his life and focus on the things that really mattered to him. Well, as the years past and I approached this mile marker, I often wondered if that would be the case in my life. That is, if age 30 would be just like any other birthday or if I would undergo the infamous "age 30 transition" as well.

Well, "30" has come; and as a pastor, husband, and father of two boys, I can tell you that my "age 30 transition" can be described in one word...Determination. I am absolutely determined to make my life count for King Jesus! I want to leverage all the resources that He's given me, in all areas of my life, in order that I can make authentic disciples of Jesus who make authentic disciples of Jesus in the most effective and efficient way possible with every single day that the Lord continues to graciously give me.

James 4:14 says, "Yet you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow. You are just a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away." And then in Ecc. 12:8, after telling us that there is nothing new under the sun, the author says, "Everything is meaningless, completely meaningless", and then the author boils all of life down to two things: 1) Reverence and Obedience to God.

At age 30, one thing is vividly clear to me: Time is short. And not just short, but fleeting quickly. As I look in the mirror every morning and see my ever grayer head, my "solar panels" which make up my receding hairline, and the increasingly defined wrinkles on my face, I'm reminded of this fact: I am dying. I'm not guaranteed tomorrow and we all know that, but my question is, "Do we live like it?" "Do I live like it?" You see because that's the certain reality that exists: I'm dying and nothing else matters in life, but falling before King Jesus and worshiping Him by making authentic disciples of Jesus who make authentic disciples of Jesus.

Many folks think of the signs of aging as a curse, but to me they are such a sweet blessing. A blessing that is evidence of God's grace in reminding me day in and day out, that I have no time to relax. I must leverage all that I have and all that I am to make disciples who make disciples in the most effective and efficient way possible, no matter what the cost, no matter what the fear, no matter how tough the road ahead. Jesus gave it all for me... I will do my best to give it all for Him. Now, I'm not talking about working toward my righteous standing before God, trying to work so that I may not be guilty. Isaiah 64:6, tells us that the best we've got, that is, we could do good things 24/7 for 365 days a year, every year of our life, and it would be as filthy rags before God in regard to gaining our righteousness or becoming innocent of our sin.

Rather, I'm talking about being so delighted that my Savior has overcome sin and it's penalty, death, for me, that it overflows out of my life as worshipful awestruck obedience. What counts toward our righteousness or innocence is not what you or I have done, are doing, or will do, but only our faith in Jesus, that what He did through the cross and resurrection was enough to cover our past, present, and future sin and it's penalty, death. It's faith in this, that makes it possible for us to be innocent and righteous in Him. This is good news! We were a broken and disobedient people from Gen. 3, but God loved us so much that He pursued us while we were sinners, took on our brokenness by becoming human, took our sins to the grave through the cross, and then overcame their penalty, death, by rising from the grave on the third day. This is the greatest love story in history! And it's this love story that leads me from great delight to want sell out for my King by making authentic disciples who make authentic disciples for the rest of the days He graciously grants me.

How are you selling out for Jesus today? Do you live today with the end in mind?

These are great questions that must be asked if you desire for your life to count for Him. As the saying goes, "Fail to plan, plan to fail"

At age 30, I'm determined to have a plan, so that I don't unintentionally waste my life on things that meaningless. How about you? What's your plan?

In Christ,
JR