This thing we call life…. Wow what a trip. I can’t remember when it started and don’t know when it will end. But, …. The journey has been amazing. By twelve years of age, I was certain that I knew it all. In my mind I had already reached adulthood as man. After all, I was as tall as some of my teachers.

 I was much to young to drive a car, but knew how to shift the gears to drive a stick. I would sneak the car keys and practice backing the car out of the garage and then pulling it back in. I didn’t need a pillow for my seat. I could see between the steering wheel and over the dash.

Once when I had just turned sixteen, I snuck my dads car keys to take his big old Mercury for a forty-mile ride. Dad was sleeping and had to work that dreaded night shift. Being the genius that I thought I was, I never dreamed that he would ever know.

I brought the car home and parked it exactly where dad had parked it and put the keys back in his pocket. We got a phone call fifteen minutes after dad left for work. He had run out of gas on his way to work. By the tone of his voice I was certain that a SWAT team would need to be called.

Somehow dad had this instinctive knowledge that I, his oldest son, had gone for a joy ride in his car. My drivers license was taken and I wasn’t allowed to drive again until I could pay for a full tank of gas in that big old Merc. By the way, they had a gas tank the size of a small swimming pool.  

I think this is also about the time in my life where I began questioning the existence of God. I had so many questions and no answers. I went to our church pastor and found that he wasn’t able to explain many of my uncertainties. This man had a doctor of divinity and would have been better working as a professor at a university.

I rebelled and denounced God. I challenged God. If you are truly real give me a sign. I pointed my finger to the heavens and shouted! Are You there? Where are You if You are real?

Back then, a war was raging in a place far from home called Vietnam. Most of us high-school boys knew that we would be drafted if we didn’t have a scholarship to collage.

I wanted to know if God existed. Is He real? I was afraid and didn’t want to face the unknown without having God with me. Reality hit hard the day I was leaving for overseas. My dad met me in the drive with a look on his face I have never forgotten.

Dad had tears in his eyes… and a small worn Bible in his hands. Dad had carried this same Bible all through WW11 and the battle of Okinawa. Dads words were clear and filled with emotion. Take this Bible with you. Remember always that you are never alone. God is always with you. He will be at your side on a ship, in a foxhole, on the street. Always remember this, and always call upon Him for help.

I still have that Bible some sixty years later and dad is gone.

Growing older in Christ is a process that will never end. Later in my life I gave my heart to Jesus. I gave my life to our Savior and Lord. Anyone who has done this already knows that its going to be a bumpy ride from that point on.

There will be highs to take your breath away. You will see Abba working in your life at every point. There will be trials to stretch your faith to its extreme. There will be times that you will fall on your face seeking Gods touch on someone you love, a child, a friend. There will be times of trial when you must walk through the fire.

Times like these bring growth. Never take your eyes off the prize. Maintain your unwavering focus and determination on the long-term goal, ignoring distractions or hardships. The prize? The prize is eternity with Jesus Christ our Lord! The prize is knowing that you do have a future. You also have the ability to bring others to know Jesus as their Lord.

You will know a peace and joy beyond all understanding. You will find that no matter where you go God is always with you. Growing older with Christ also means that you have built a personal relationship with him.

Attacks will come from every direction. This is part of life and these are often serious. These times in your life are when you must release everything to our God. You must trust God knowing that He alone is in total control.

John 14:10-11  (Jesus) …. Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the

                          Father in me? The words that I speak to you I do not speak on my

                          own, but the Father who lives in me is doing these things.

John 14:12-14 Truly, truly I say to you, he who believes in me, he also will do the

                        deeds that I am doing; and he will do greater things than these,

                        because I am going to my Father.

                        And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father will

                        be glorified in the Son.

                        If you ask anything in my name, I will do it.

The more you give of yourself to God, serving Him and studying His Holy Word, the closer you will become in your growth with Christ our Lord.

My prayer is that somewhere in these words you can find a little of yourself and that your growth in Christ is allowed to blossom and mature, God bless you.

Most people call William Moorhead, “Papa Moose”. He brags that he is  married to an angel with her wings clipped. He and Marilyn have been married for nine years. Writing is something he never thought that he’d be called to do. However, God pricked his heart five years ago and he can’t put his pen down. He never knows what the subject will be or when God will stir his heart to write. It is Papa’s hope and prayer that his short stories will touch the hearts and minds of those who read them. 

Photograph by CoPilot