It is said that playwright George Bernard Shaw was once asked what the most beautiful thing in the world was. “Youth,” he replied, “is the most beautiful thing in this world—and what a pity that it has to be wasted on children!” The American poet James Russell Lowell wrote, “If youth be a defect, it is one that we outgrow only too soon.” Most of us heard somebody say to us during secondary school: “appreciate this time, these are the best years of your life.” And we all thought really? Is acne, social awkwardness, and living with parents the pinnacle of living?!? And yet as we get older there are many times when we wish we could align our elderly wisdom with our youthful vigour. This Sunday we will be preaching from the second last text from Ecclesiastes (Ecc 11:7 – 12:8). It is a beautiful passage that reflects upon all of life with some of the bible’s most vivid images. We see light and darkness set the stage for the contrasts of youth and aging. The Teacher writes of hearts cheerful in youth and vexed in old age. Chapter 12 reveals a picture of our last physical days by describing the ruinous state of a deteriorating house. And yet the message, though painfully real and sobering, is neither maudlin nor morose. Two important commands present themselves: rejoice and remember. If we are blessed with a lengthy life, rejoice in all our days (11:8). There is much to be said for the kind of attitude that embraces and appreciates each stage of life. I was recently reminded that I am not twenty any longer when playing a bit of basketball with some of our Vertical Youth. Tim Wagler was kind enough to lower the rim for me to enable a dunk, but it was obvious to me that I don’t have the jumping ability of high school me. However, I can still rejoice with the swish of a perfect shot! When our children were infants, Linda and I loved the smell of their freshly bathed scalps, or the feel of their velvety soft skin. Daniel doesn’t really appreciate us snuggling him like a newborn, but soon we will have a grandchild, so we rejoice! What does God want you to appreciate, to rejoice in whatever day of life you are in? A perfectly struck drive on the first tee? The warmth of the sun through a window on a cold winter day? A phone call from a child far from home? Most importantly, the Teacher says that rejoicing in all our days, through all seasons of life, is only fully and properly done as we remember our Creator (12:1). In all we do, we rejoice in the Lord by remembering and looking to Him. Living not merely “under the sun”, but in the light of who God is and what he had made us to be. As Christians this ought to be foremost in our hearts; we remember God for he first remembered us.
Much love,
Pastor Gary
As we gather for Sunday worship, we want you to meet with God and be transformed by the Word. Prepare your heart by reading the passage and listening to the songs for Sunday.
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