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Is It Dangerous for Christians To Long for "The Good Old Days?"

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What makes us more aware of our mortality than growing old? Remember when you were a kid? Birthdays were welcomed days. Whether it was excitement over a party attended by your best friends, growing another year closer to the coveted driver’s license, or simply the desire to be viewed as an adult … birthdays were a highlight to the year.

As we grow older, those birthdays come a little quicker each year. I am experiencing this currently, as January marks my 40th birthday. It seems like every year passes faster and faster.

When we look mortality in the face, those of us who are in Christ Jesus are reminded that this life is as “a vapor that appears for a little while, and then vanishes away” (James 4:14, NASB). We may be aging and weakening every day, but we are a little closer to our forever home in Heaven.

James 4:13-14 NASB: "Come now, you who say, 'Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, and spend a year there and engage in business and make a profit.' Yet you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow. For you are just a vapor that appears for a little while, and then vanishes away."

The Apostle Paul writes, “Therefore we do not lose heart, but though our outer person is decaying, yet our inner person is being renewed day by day” (2 Corinthians 4:16, NASB). The ones who do not know Christ are to be pitied. For those who die without relationship with God, this truly is their best life.

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However, we, as Christians, have the promise of a new, eternal, resurrected body (1 Corinthians 15:53) and of a new heaven and earth (Revelation 21:1). Isn’t it amazing to contemplate this reality? We will have no more aches, worries, memory lapses, ailments, etc. Rather, we will be made new and complete in the presence of Jesus. If that doesn’t get you excited, I don’t know what will.

Another truth to keep in mind is that our past is simply … the past. It is good to remember the olden days, but we should not long for them or let them defeat us again (if they were bad times). King Solomon, the second wisest man to ever live, following Jesus, states, “Do not say, ‘Why is it that the former days were better than these?’ For it is not from wisdom that you ask about this” (Ecclesiastes 7:10).

In “(Not) Forever Young” of the hit series The Hammitts Band Together, Matt and Sarah Hammitt reminisce on what it was like being young after trying to do activities that came naturally many years before.

After a quick but difficult session of roller blading, Sarah comes to the realization that she has been mourning her youth. “I feel like it’s hitting me right now,” she says, “like in the last year, that I’m never going to be young again. And I didn’t realize – I honestly didn’t realize because I’m so carefree and like whatever – that I actually cared about getting old. I’m mourning the loss of being young” (see video below at 21:13-21:30).

When we live life stuck in the past, we are not impactful in the present (1 Corinthians 13:11). Certainly, we celebrate events from the past, such as Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection; we learn from past mistakes; and we remind ourselves of God’s faithfulness throughout our lives. However, we are present in the moment, allowing God to work through us in the here-and-now.

Sarah ultimately makes the decision to work toward surrendering what she cannot control. She decides to do things to preserve what she can, but work toward accepting that “the ultimate … goal of aging is to be beautiful to the people you love and the people around you and the people that matter the most” (see video below at 22:21-22:38).

Let’s decide today to embrace our aging process, with all its twists and turns. Realize that we grow wiser with age (if we are doing life right), we have continued opportunities to impact the Kingdom of God, and that we are another day closer to our eternal home.

Stay encouraged! Christ has a place prepared for His children (John 14:3).

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“(Not) Forever Young” | The Hammitts Band Together

“Another year has passed and Matt and Sarah Hammitt are grappling with getting older. In the midst of all the changes and distractions they discover the ultimate goal of aging and how to help each other through this inevitable process.”

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Dr. Randall Downs is from Mobile, AL. He received his Master of Divinity (2011) and his PhD in Church History (2018) from Mid-America Baptist Theological Seminary in Memphis, TN. Randall is the Director of the Worship Arts program at Grand Canyon University, and he currently serves as Worship Pastor at CrossLife Church in Anthem, AZ. Randall is also the singer, guitarist, and songwriter for the folk/folk-rock band, Loser’s Way Home.
Dr. Randall Downs is from Mobile, AL. He received his Master of Divinity (2011) and his PhD in Church History (2018) from Mid-America Baptist Theological Seminary in Memphis, TN. Randall is the Director of the Worship Arts program at Grand Canyon University, and he currently serves as Worship Pastor at CrossLife Church in Anthem, AZ. Randall is also the singer, guitarist, and songwriter for the folk/folk-rock band, Loser’s Way Home.




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