Colossians 3:7 In these you too once walked, when you were living in them.
This year my high school graduation class is holding a 40th class reunion. Getting past the reality of being 40 years since graduation has been a struggle. My home town has changed. There are many new buildings and businesses along with a few old buildings and businesses. It is a town which, for lack of a better term, has matured. As have my classmates and myself.
Class reunions are a time where many of us will engage in periods of self examination. Some might call it navel gazing. We look back on our lives and see where we started, where we have been and where we are today. Most will see a remarkable change in our past versus present comparison. And some may not see any changes. Some wines get better with age, and some wines do not. Yes people are the same. The 18 year old young man that left East Tawas, Michigan is not the 58 year old man that returned this weekend. Experiences have molded me for the better, and for the worse. A loving and most merciful God has allowed me to be here on this day to rekindle old friendships. My faith has matured in a manner I could scarcely have imagined as a young man. Finding a love for The Word of God is one of the joys I now have in my life. And being able to share that same Word with a gift from God is part and parcel of what I have become. Each of has our own story, and our own set of gifts from God. We have been given a set of unique experiences that can either grow us, or hinder us. It depends on how we chose to handle that which is our past. Lastly, and most importantly is we are never alone. He is always there. Jesus promised to be with us always to the end of the age (Matthew 28:20.) We embrace that truth and find comfort in that reality. We once waflked and lived in one life, but in Christ we are and walk as His followers. It is a different life we live, and it is a better life that we live.
PRAYER: Father, thank You for this life. Thank You for Your love and grace. Thank You for Your mercy and forgiveness that I cannot earn. Thank you for these 40 years I have been in this world since graduation. And finally Father, thank You for the gift that is each and everyday I am in Your creation. Amen.
