Romans 12:3 “For through the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think more highly of himself than he ought to think; but to think so as to have sound judgment, as God has allotted to each a measure of faith.”
“Because of the privilege and authority God has given me, I give each of you this warning: Don’t think you are better than you really are. Be honest in your evaluation of yourselves, measuring yourselves by the faith God has given us.”
What you see is a part of my personal history. The painting to the left is the British surrender at Yorktown…the one on the right is General Benjamin Lincoln. If you placed a picture of my grandfather next to it, you would think they were brothers. He is my great…many times grandfather, my mom did our genealogy and showed it to me when I was 7. I went around bragging about it and so she felt the need to give me “perspective”. He was not the best “tactician” when it came to battles, but very good at negotiations. If fact he was not doing well at the battle of Saratoga until another General came to the rescue and was considered the “hero” of the battle. That General was Benedict Arnold! A great General, but with a selling price!
Birthdays for me have always been more about “Focus” than “Festivities”! I mean I like to party with family, so I enjoy, but inside I do find I spend time to be introspective. Who am I: Am I where I want to be in character and in relationships? My Lord, my wife, and my kids?
For me, the most important answer to that question is no. NO? Yes, no, because if it is “yes” I have ceased to grow and have been captured by pride and arrogance. I want to be all I can be for those in my life, starting with the Lord and then everybody else. If I think I have arrived I have deceived myself and all that is left is the regret I will experience at the end when the Lord shows me, “lovingly, yet honestly” that I believed the lie of the enemy. For that is what it is! A lie from the pit of hell that I can ever be all that I can be while still living in this flesh that is infected with the sin nature!
Born again yes! BUT still inhabiting a fallen vessel, that loves itself and sin. My inner man loves the Lord and His ways, so each birthday should see victories of the character, while counting down with anticipation that moment…for most through death, or for some (I hope, I hope) through the return of our King!
The So What: Everyone says that on your birthday you get to do what you want…OK, I want to ask you one question and beg you to at least invest a moment to ask yourself – “How many births have I had?” Being born physically is nothing…it passes so fast! Just yesterday, I bought my first motorcycle…I was 13 years old… “Whoosh” this year I am 67! Spiritual life is FOREVER. It never ends. “Eternal life” includes “quality” not just quantity. God made our spirits to exist forever. The issue is where will you exist? God has made it possible to be with Him, if not, you will still exist, but separated from Him. He left that decision to you. Please, make sure you do! If you want to ask me, I will be glad to explain. You can email me at nategwm@gmail.com. I will be praying for you to experience a second birthday!
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