Another Year Older!

As some of you may know, as of this week (actually, yesterday) I am now another year older. It’s amazing to think how quickly time has gone by, both the decades as well as the individual years. Some of you can relate well—especially, those of you who are a bit older.  After all, when we are young, one year, no less a decade, seems so much longer than when we have a few more years under our belt. The older we get, the quicker time seems to go by. Right now, for me the years seem to be flying!

As I look back it seems like it was just a few years ago that Kim and I were getting married and starting our life together. (We celebrated 37 years this past month!)  It seems like it was just a few years ago that our kids were piling into the van to go somewhere as a family or riding their bikes around the neighborhood or sitting around a dinner table, all talking at the same time as we tried to get through a meal. It seems like it was just a few years ago that Kim and I were starting out in ministry, serving first as youth pastors and then eventually pastoring our own church. As of this week, all of our children are married (Nathaniel and Sarah were married this past Tuesday), the grandchildren are coming along, and Kim and I are wondering what this next stage in life holds for us. Yes, time is going by at warp-speed, or so it seems. 

Today I relate well to the Psalmist’s words, “I was young and now I am old,  yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken….”  (Psalm 37:25 – NIV)  Not that I’m all that old, but I can say God has been faithful to me and my family, helping us through each and every season of life, taking us through the highs and lows of life, walking with us and providing for us along the way. In the midst of a life that sometimes does seem be flying by—a life that  seems to be filled with one change after another and one challenge after another—I am thankful that God has been there each step of the way, caring for us as the good Father he is. 

Let me encourage you to trust in the unchanging faithfulness of God. He has promised to never leave us or forsake us, to be our Shepherd, and to be our provider. And, he is more than able and willing to walk with you through all the years of your life, no matter how fast they might go by! 

“…his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.” (Lamentations 3:22-23) 

Have a great day! 

- Pastor Tim Harris