“As I look back over my life, I can see how Your love has guided me. Even though I've done wrong, you never left me alone, but You forgave me and You kept on blessing. This I recall to my mind. Therefore I have hope. It's because of Your mercy that we are not consumed; because thy compassions fail not. They are new every morning. Great is Thy faithfulness. Great is Thy faithfulness! (Lyrics by Eddie James based on Lamentations 3:23).” Fifty years ago I got up and went to work on this day. It was June 11, 1971. Before you start figuring out my age, you know I have told you that before. So keep reading on! I worked as expected by my employer from 7:30 – 2:00. No, I did not finish my 8-hour plus shift; not yet. I had to leave early to head for the State Fairgrounds where my college graduation was being held. Fifty years ago! Half a century! Wow! A blessing, right? From my matriculation until my graduation, I learned a lot. And over the next 50 years, I would learn much, much, more. I’m still learning, just like you. There are things that you cannot learn in the classroom, agree? After all the ceremonial parts of the graduation, after all the confirmed diplomas had been given out, and after all the celebrations among families started, I walked to my car, got in it, and drove back to work. I still had a few hours to put in and some work to finish, preparation for the next day had to be completed. When finished with work, I continued my routine, went home to my parent’s house, ate, rested, and slept to be ready for the next day. No party, no parting gifts, no plethora of congratulatory calls. Forgive me for reflecting, looking back over my life a bit. That is not what I got up to do. But I apparently was to take a trip down memory lane and look where the Lord had brought me from, and let out some praise to God for Him seeing me through, and thank Him for forgiveness for my mischief and mistakes and continuously making me better. He’s not done with me yet! Where were you fifty years ago? Some of you can look back that far, but I know, some of you were not born yet. Yet hear we are, regardless of our age, sharing the same new day, a day that we have never seen before. Pause and look back at how the Lord shaped you, showed you a better path, and started you in a new direction. Stop what you are doing and think about how His grace and mercy saw you through! Think about how the handcuffs of what might have been deep disappointments, how they were broken with the help of the strong right hand of the Lord! Pause and look back and realize that you are still here and as long as you are here, you are her for a purpose or the purposes that our loving Lord has for you! Yes, “Where Were You?’ journeys back in time can be beneficial. They should propel you forward in your walk as a child of God, realizing as they say, “God is not done with me yet!” Or maybe you will realize that you need to run on and see the end that is going to be! Notice, I did not say, “…to see what the end is going to be.” You know your end, your final destiny. It is in Glory, and yes, that is where we can sing and shout the victory forever; for an eternity! Now go start your Friday morning, revived and with the renewed strength you prayed for yesterday! Go add some moments that you will be able to put in your mental memory album so that one day you can look back again, realizing if it had not been for the Lord who was on your side, where would you be and how things would have been different! Tune in tomorrow and I will share what I intended to write when I sat down early this morning! Wait a minute! Tell your smart device to play Eddie James song mentioned above if you want a happy, huge grateful tear or two! Be blessed! “What if the Lord had not been on our side?” (Psalm 124:1a Good News Bible)
Still committed to the climb,
Mark L. King