image by Getty
Looking ahead, my spiritual vision is maybe 20/400. But looking back, it may approach 20/40. Maybe you’ve experienced the same—the past has more clarity than the future. Looking back, I see my bad decisions, my good ones. The times that God has gently nudged me in ways I didn’t comprehend until later. The times he took a figurative 2 x 4 to me. We can all benefit from looking back to gain a better insight into how to follow God.
A life marked by pages turning
many with no backspace key
some by my choice
some by others’
some by time
some by chance
some by him
the freedom of childhood
few responsibilities, just some chores
days of play
of roaming fields and making forts
of exhausting the books of the local library
turned by time into the teens
lessons driven by testosterone
discovering the joys of young women
growing strength for sports
thinking of days yet to come
a new page of adulthood
responsibilities of paying bills
ironically more, but restricted, freedom
yet alone
one page I turned
with his gentle but firm nudging
finally a specific way to serve him
that led to a page that ended the aloneness
then another new page of how to serve
still impacting with words
both spoken and written
but in new ways
just not in a pulpit
one perhaps penultimate page
driven by age
restoring much of the freedom of childhood days
Will more pages turn
before the ultimate?
The poem explores the surface of changes, the subtext is a verse we all recognize, “He guides me along right paths, bringing honor to his name” (Psalm 23:3, NLT). Now, I see his guidance each step along the way. Yes, some pages I turned, some he turned, some we turned.
So, my suggestion to you. Write a poem of the pages you and he have turned in your life. Or make a list of the major events that have shaped you. Identify the major turning points. Explore the lessons learned, those yet to be learned and applied. What jumps out at you about you? About him? About the right paths? How has your life, so far, brought honor to him? How might you bring more honor? Really, that’s the goal.