Switched Keys

Last month I celebrated my 64th birthday.  That was also my 2⁶th, as well 4³rd, and 8²nd. Someone suggested it was a powerful birthday.  Besides using powers to count the years,  you could also use different number bases, in which case it was my 100th birthday,  using base 8, or octal.  Using hexadecimal it was my 40th. Issuing binary,  it was my 1000000th. All of that,  of course,  means I am counting years. I could have also counted the months,  weeks,  days,  hours, minutes,  or seconds.  I had a pastor who shared his anniversary in seconds. But measuring your life should be more than measuring time. 

When I was a teenager my dad once showed me how to change the thermostat in a car. I had no experience with cars and probably would have forgotten soon after.  Over the years I learned a lot about repairing cars by necessity.  I have also learned a lot about many things.  I can install telephones,  do plumbing,  paint houses,  program computers,  and do graphic design.  Accounting and tax preparation are others areas of expertise.  Over a lifetime I've accumulated many skills,  and some credentials to go with some of them.  But skill collecting is not all there is to life.

I've also seen or heard many people compare their life accomplishments in terms or possessions and the power and status that goes with it. While possessions help insure some degree of continuity in living, the possessions in excess of our needs are not really worth much. In fact, the more you try to USE all of the possessions at your disposable, the more time it takes away from you, the more life it takes away from you.

But when my dad helped me changed that thermostat, he was also taking time with me. It was part of a relationship. Much of life is built on relationship. Even with the most amazing accomplishments, there's not much satisfaction if you don't have someone to share it with. Many relationships are built early in life within your family. Others are created at school, work, church, or randomly as you go about your business. 

Relationships are cool, but the most important relationship you can have is with God. Yes, you can have a relationship with God. As a Christian you can know the presence of God. It won't be face to face, but as you grow in it, you can know when he is talking and what he is saying. It's even more exciting when you see him work things out in your life. Then, as you build relationships with others who also know God's presence, you become even closer to Him. It's a life worth living no matter how old you are when you start.