Turning 40...

I turned 40 a week ago. 

Source: Internet

Those who know me will know that I am very fond of 'counting down to my decade'. 

In my 20s, I would count down to 30 on every birthday, counting on my hands (or hand) how many fingers (years) left until I turn 30. 

In my 30s, that tradition continued, only I would be counting down to 40. 


I used to be wary of my age, not just because of the fact that I'm growing older (and therefore, more wrinkles and growing more white hair and all the external changes that come with age 😂) but also because my children are still quite young. I would often lament - my youngest will only be 4 years old when I turn 40. 

Add to that, the fact that I had this thinking - my remaining years of actively serving God reduces every year I grow older. 

But in recent few years, God has subtly changed me in the way I view 'age'. I no longer have this silent restlessness when it comes to aging. 


In this past first week of being 40, the Holy Spirit is still speaking and reassuring me on this. 

On the morning of my 40th birthday, as I was reading this devotional by Rick Renner, Looks Can Be Deceiving, God spoke to me from this line: You must remember that your inward man is filled with the power of the Holy Spirit. 

The HS was telling me that age and outward appearance are external. What's important is that our inward man be filled with the power and grace and energy and youth of the Holy Spirit! 


The next morning after I turned 40, my brother in Christ, Ps Ashok RK pointed out, in an article, an often overlooked part of Psalm 103: 'He renews my youth like that of the eagle's'. 

He said 'The life of God is in my heart, in my lungs, in my bones, in my liver, in my brain, in my marrow and in every cell of my body.' and that 'Apparently, you can grow old but stay young.'

So, after telling me that my inward man is filled with the power of the Holy Spirit, God then tells me that I can grow old but stay young! 


That's not all. 

After that, as I listened to Living A Significant Life by Ps Leif Hetland, again, the Holy Spirit reminded me that even at the age of 40, I am still to live a significant life for Jesus! 

As Ps Leif Hetland said - The talent that God gives you is His gift to you. And what you do with that talent is your gift that you give back to God. 


So, outwardly, I may be turning 50, 60, so on and so forth, but He renews my youth and fills my inward man with the fullness of the Holy Spirit. 

And that is why I can and how I will live a significant life for Jesus! 


Beloved in Christ, may we all live a significant life for Jesus not for our own benefits or rewards, but for others' sake. 

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