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| Later Fall Near Our House |
I have seen many Novembers and I'm writing
this on my birthday, which calls for reflection. The signs of my times tell me I
also am in the "later autumn" of my life. The colourful days of raising
children, teaching, managing the household and family, shopping, and travelling are
vanishing.
Hank asks me what I want.
After 43 years of marriage, the Norwegian
and I don't always exchange gifts, but this birthday Hank asked, "Do you
need, or want, anything?"
"No, I don't really need anything,"
I said, chuckling.
"Jewellery? A new pair of earrings. .
. ?" he asked.
I’d
love a new pair of earrings," I said, in light of this being a special
birthday and Hank’s offer
to celebrate with me.
What do you want me to do for you? Jesus asks Bartimaeus.
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| Unsplash |
While Jesus and his disciples and a large crowd
were leaving Jericho, Bartimaeus heard it was Jesus of Nazareth passing by. "Jesus,
Son of David, have mercy on me!" he shouted.
When others tried to silence him, Bartimaeus
cried out all the louder.
Jesus stood still and said to his
disciples, "Call him here."
"Take heart,” they said. “Get
up he is calling you." Bartimaeus quickly threw off his cloak, jumped up
and came to Jesus.
Jesus asked, "What do you want me to
do for you?"
Without hesitation, he answered, "My teacher, let me see again."
Just as Hank asked me what I wanted for my
birthday, Jesus asks us what we really want him to do for us. Our answer would
be more serious than a pair of earrings, but my story is a reminder that Jesus
wants us to consider what we are asking for.
Learning to embrace this season of our lives
As we get older, my husband and I are
facing more health problems. Hank, my senior by a few years, faced the first
onslaught of the aging process. Being a couple, when life slows down for one,
it slows down for both. Adjustments are needed.
Hank and I pray about our health,
especially Hank's health, but, as Hank's doctor says with a kindly smile,
"I can't make you 21 again." We’re both trying to reset our minds regarding what we can
realistically do. I've been slower than Hank to accept our new limitations. Since
we can’t
change what is, we need to change our expectations, and to pray for strength
and guidance from there.
Last spring when I became ill with
depression, again, and neuralgia, which was new, we faced obstacles in managing
the basics. My doctor advised me to curtail all activities, including writing
and music. Of course, I still wrote, but it was Morning Pages, for me alone. I still sang, but it was in the basement on my own. I needed to rest. Hank and I leaned on God, on each other, and on our
family and friends.
I feared something would happen to Hank. I
feared being on my own after all these years. God assured me he still had
"plans to prosper us and not to harm us." (Jeremiah 29:11)
Like Bartimaeus, I needed to throw off my
cloak of doubt and fear and to ask Jesus to give me fresh “insight” as to how I must walk during this season
of my life.
A message from The Message
Eugene H. Peterson in his
"Introduction to Proverbs" in The Message says, “Many people think that what's written in the Bible has
mostly to do with getting people into heaven. . . It does have to do with that,
of course. . . It is equally concerned with living on earth--living well,
living in robust sanity."
Proverbs 3:5-6 in The Message says,
"Trust God from the bottom of
your heart,
don't try to figure out
everything on your own.
Listen for God's voice in
everything you do, everywhere you go,
he's the one who will keep you
on track.
With God's help and his Word to guide me,
I am learning to embrace this "later autumn" season of my life. He
"has not given (me) a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a
sound mind." (2 Timothy 1:7)
As Eugene H. Peterson might say, I plan, with God’s help, to live well and "in robust sanity" during this season
of my life. I am learning to embrace life and what is!
