To my amazement, I turn 58 next week. I say “amazement” because life has gone by so quickly. For years I would gently say to any elderly men who cut me off while driving, “Hey, watch it grandpa.” I have stopped saying that (I have seven grandchildren). If you are worried about getting old, or you want to consol someone who is, there is one really positive thing about aging. No, it’s not senor discounts. It's actually getting old. Think about how many millions didn’t get to do that. They died in their youth. Think of the 20 million people who died in the First World War. Most of them would have been soldiers who were in the prime of life--probably in their 20’s. Or think of the 61 million whose lives were taken in the Second World War. Then think of all the other wars in history, all the young people who been taken by disease, or killed by cars and through other accidents. I remember when I was sixteen years old being pulled under the water while surfing. I became disoriented and mistakenly swam towards the bottom instead of towards the surface. When I did break through and gasped for air, I almost sucked in a passing seagull. I was surfing alone. It was getting dark. I could have easily been drowned. But I wasn’t, and more than forty years later I’m still alive and kicking. So gratitude for life itself has helped me have a positive attitude towards something that is depressing for most. Compared to the fate of millions of others, I am incredibly blessed. Add to that, the fact that I have everlasting life in Christ, and I am unspeakably blessed beyond words.
