Hello you old foggies!! JK
I hesitated to write this blog but I really think it needs to be written. There have been blogs about culture differences but none about age/maturity. These are a few tips I’ve been taught by the Lord concerning being the third oldest on a squad of 60. I’ve only been on the race for less than a month but I’ve noticed some things and wanted to share. This isn’t meant to negate the younger crowd. I fully believe that the Lord delights in your youth. “Let no one despise your youth…” But the truth of the matter is the race is a little different for those of us that are set in their ways, lol.
- Learn to have an extra measure of patience. Keep in mind that this is journey….for everyone.
- Everyone is on a different journey and must learn different things. God may have taught you that lesson 12 times over but allow for all of your brothers and sisters to learn as God sees fit at the pace God sees fit.
- There may be generational differences, culture difference, background differences, etc. I come from a generation/culture that was taught to obey authority. PERIOD. There was no room for healthy challenging or question asking. This clashed…beware, lol.
- Different doesn’t mean wrong (unless it is sin, Rebellion is sin…etc) For the life of me I couldn’t relate to some things but that doesn’t mean it was less valid.
- Be open and ready for change. It’s gonna happen, don’t buck up against it.
- You don’t always know what’s best. Oh snap!!! You knew it was coming right? Lol. As older ppl that’s been on our own for a decade or more, we can label ourselves as wisdom incarnate. Things will go a lot smoother if you don’t.
- In the mist of all the wonderful and heavy things you are packing, pack another 50 pounds of forgiveness. Ppl can get on your nerves ten times over. Over things that you thought someone should have taught them a long time ago. It’s not your job to teach them and when it happens, forgive. And forgive quickly.
- Don’t let the thought in your mind that “these are just a bunch of kids” These are your brothers and sisters in Christ, men and women of God, co-heirs with Christ.
- Age doesn’t mean maturity and younger age doesn’t mean a lack of maturity.
- When you are lead to call out something that needs to be, be careful and make sure the Lord is telling you to do so. An incident happened and my Squad leader encouraged me to allow others to stumble every now and again. Of course, you don’t want ppl to go down the trail you’ve been but sometimes in order for some to learn, God must deal with them and you catching them doesn’t allow room for God.
All in all, these are tips that everyone can follow but I think that for some us, it would be nice to be targeted with these.
I wish you an amazing journey on the race. Don’t let this list scare you, we all need this list to some degree. These are a few things God has been teaching me and figured I’d share. Happy Racing!!!!
