I haven't looked it up, but I'm pretty sure that it has been more than a year since I blogged here. I can't help but think that it would be good for me to spend some time in Sharon's classroom (as the student) where the emphasis on learning to share what I have and living properly amongst others would be quite relevant. How embarrassing would that be though? Was it embarrassing to the people who heard it when Jesus said it?
The Big 3-0
As Sharon has previously mentioned, I turned 30 last week. Most of my birthdays have gone by with no real personal value attached to them (except for when I turned 25: at the time it signified that I was now old enough to rent a minivan. A small and perhaps difficult-to-understand victory, but a victory nonetheless), but this year was notably different. I think perhaps the biggest reason is that the age of 30 is when things changed drastically for Jesus. Well, circumstantially anyways. I know He would tell you that nothing really changed - He was still walking with God, still perfect, still living in obedience, still pleasing God, still "on holy ground" in God's presence, still tasting and learning what it meant to walk with God, still on the road to the end of the Restoration of All Things. I know He would point you to the words of "Moses, the man of God" who says "Lord, You have been our dwelling place in all generations" and note that things like home, comfort, and familiarity are not found in a place or circumstance, but in a person, in God Himself. "Home" as God intends us to know it, is when God and His Child are together in the place God chooses.
Anyways, besides all that important stuff, the age of 30 is when things drastically changed for Jesus (if it is even worth noting at this point...). I say that because I see the same in my life. In the last year or so there has been the death of old things (not bad things, just old things), there has been the birth of new things, and purposes and plans that have been hidden and unclear over the last ten years have seemingly begun to be revealed. I think I will leave it at that for now. But 30 will go down in my life as the day that God began to do new things.
One last comment about the last 10 or so years:
I was at a funeral probably about a year ago for a man who had walked with God a long time, and the preacher in his comments about this man described his life as "a life well lived."
I have to temper my comments on this, because it enrages me to think about such a stupid comment. If I die tomorrow and you intend to walk around at my funeral saying "Brad. What a great guy. His was a life well lived" please do everyone else a favor and stay home, duct tape your mouth, and lock yourself in your room. It's for the best.
The mark of any Christian's life is that it is a life well redeemed. Satan will spend our lives telling us that our lives are being well lived. God spends our lives reminding us that our lives have been well redeemed. By Him and Him only. Isaiah 26:12 says: "Lord, You establish peace for us; all that we have accomplished You have done for us."
Such is the mark of my life. As I reflect on the last ten years or so and the journey those years contained, I can only say that they were years well redeemed. One thing that God loves is to do things in our lives in such a way that it is not possible for us to credit ourselves, our idols, anything else really (read Isaiah 48:3-8).
" A life well lived" - honestly. I don't hear that level of profanity even at work. Disgusting.
That's all for now.
I'm going to leave it at that for now. There is a lot of content that makes up what I've just talked about that I would like to share. But not today.
5 comments:
yay brad blogged!!
hahaha
looking forward to seeing what God has for you this year!
Hmmmm......the conundrum of the Christian life. Well redeemed because we have a Redeemer who does everything perfectly. A life well lived - yes - because we have a Redeemer who longs for His redeemed to live as redeemed - and mystery of mysteries - enables them to do so as they submit to His authority. A well redeemed life well lived - by God's grace and all for His glory. I don't much care what people say about me when I'm dead - but I do long to hear my Redeemer's 'well done'. Love you my son! Mom
"A well redeemed life well lived"
Nice. Thanks for the clarification mom.
Love you too!
happy birthday brad! i loved reading your perspective on turning 30. not just a celebration of life, but of God's work in your life. i am surrounded by a lot of people right now who are turning 30 and many of them talk about it in a depressing way, that they are getting "so old." but to see the years & decades as evidence of God's grace re-working you... that is really refreshing to hear. :)
and, i enjoyed that quotation on sin, sharon. we just talked about it during community group on friday ... trying to figure out why it's hard to pursue reconciliation in a biblical way and go up to someone for a straight out confession. and one reason is because we have a low view of sin ... often we brush off our sinful thoughts/desires/actions as "it's no big deal ... whatever~"
i think i will repost that on our group's book blog. we are reading through "crazy love" together, a chapter per week. you can see some of the updates here, if you want -- www.whale-tales.blogspot.com
:)
i LOVED the peasant princess series. pastor mark's sermons clean up my lenses to see the Word as so much more relevant to every day life than i ever thought possible.
hey brad, when I heard about Dr. Chuck's passing, I thought about your blog post and how "A well redeemed life well lived" would fit his life so well. I was going to post it on the bsf group note but didn't want to plagiarize "your phrase"...hehe or I guess partly your mum's too...
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