Reaching the milestone of fifty years walking with God serves as a profound reminder of His grace and growth. Reflecting on these decades as a believer, I am struck by how consistently the Lord has guided my path from the very beginning.
1. God’s grace is magnificent. It was He who led my seventh-grade classmate to share the gospel with me and orchestrated our living next door to a Southern Baptist deacon who faithfully took me to church. He led me to a congregation where the pastor clearly preached the Word, and He patiently and persistently convicted my heart. I am eternally grateful that He saved me the very first time I stepped into a church.
2. His calling is amazing. While some debate the concept of calling, I can only testify to my own experience. As I sat on the front pew after the pastor prayed with me on the day of my salvation, I heard a clear impression in my heart: “I want you to preach my Word.” At the time, I had no understanding of the Holy Spirit or that a specific calling to ministry existed. Fifty years later, I remain amazed that I have the privilege to preach God’s Word.
3. His plan is incomprehensible. Today, I think of God’s Word to the prophet Jeremiah: “I chose you before I formed you in the womb; I set you apart before you were born” (Jer 1:5). You see, He saved me and called me knowing how often my failures would be, how persistent my pride would be, how many my faithless worries would be, how recurrently I would work in my own strength. He knew me—and still he called me to himself and his work. I can’t help but weep as I write these words wrapped in grace.
4. Following him gets sweeter as the years go by. Those words are more than the lyrics to an old song; they are truth he illustrates every moment by his faithfulness to his own. At this stage of my life, I increasingly realize how great God is—and consequently, how little the temporary things of this world matter. I’m more joyous than ever today to be an “alien and stranger” (1 Peter 2:11), knowing that not only is he sweet today, but the best with him is yet to come. Forever.
5. The psalmist was right. His reflections on God’s faithfulness led him to this conclusion: “I have been young and now I am old, yet I have not seen the righteous abandoned or his children begging for bread” (Psa 37:25). I need not add to his words.
6. There’s no reason to slow down in running the race today. Having been a believer now for fifty years means that I’m getting older—but that truth doesn’t bother me. What it does do, though, is intensify my urgency to do the work of the gospel. With family, friends, and neighbors still non-believers, and with 4 billion-plus people still having little access to the gospel, much work remains.
Thank you, my 12-year-old friend who led me to the Lord.
Thank you, church of the Lord Jesus, for loving me.
Most of all, thank You, Lord. You are good.
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This article originally appeared on ChuckLawless.com and is reposted here by permission.