PERSPECTIVE

Josh Knipple provides us with another of his unique perspectives on life. We all look forward to what Josh has to say. You won’t be disappointed! Thx Josh

Perspective.  As I get older that has become one of the greatest words I have started to understand in my life.  You see, I turned 43 this year.  Growing up I used to think hitting 40 was like the end of the world.  In my mind it meant downhill from there.  Somehow in my mind that was the benchmark of when you start losing your hair, your once trim body has now turned into a “dad-bod” and your memory starts to go.  Now that I have passed that benchmark personally, I keep trying to look at what lies ahead in the optimistic realm instead of the “woe is me” mentality.  Yes, my body may hurt a little bit more and my kids may pick on me about my age.  But every so often I can still outrun them, and according to my wife I still look as good as ever.  (Not sure I always believe her).

Can you remember with me back to high school science and doing experiments.  For some reason I can remember filling a beaker with liquid and our teacher asking if it is half empty or half full?  How do you see it?  Then the debates would begin.  To be honest I think I have always been a glass half full personality.  Trying to see the bright side.  In life, our age, and our perspective can play a major role in how we live.  On one hand I can look at my age and go, “Man my life, according to family genes is probably halfway over, mrrr, mrrr, totally down on myself.”  Or I can look and say, “Heck yeah, I have almost half my life still to live!”  Think about all the things still to be done.

Each summer in the Johnstown Magazine they have an issue that focuses on the 35 under 35.   In it they choose 35 influential people from the area making an impact who are, you guessed it, under 35.  I remember my 35th birthday and receiving a card where one of my friends thought it would be hilarious to say “congrats, you are halfway to 70.”  Talk about a downer.  Well my grandfather just passed away recently at the age of 96 and I remember him making comments like “Oh to be young again.”  96.  I am not even halfway there yet, which in all reality I don’t want to live that long.  To him, me being in my 40s meant I had so much life left to live.  To my kids, man dad you are old.  How do you look at life.  Even the idea of still being 35 seems so long ago, and I was joking with my wife recently of how young we felt then.  “Those youngins, they don’t know how good they have it” like we are so old.  Or when we hear college students stop at our house complaining about how tired they are.  My first question is always, “Oh yeah, tell me about your day.”  They the look at me like I should feel there exhaustion, “Well I had to get up at 10 for my two classes, and now I have homework from them.”  I can’t help but stare right through them as I think about our sleepless night with sick kids at home screaming.  “Those two classes sound brutal, better go take a nap, we wouldn’t want to wear you out.”  In the meantime I can see Linds in the background, ready to throw them across the room.  As a college student, early 20s life and class may seem exhausting.  Now as a parent of 4, life as a college student seems like a dream time to go back to.  Perspective.  See what I am saying.

In Scripture Paul writes to Timothy saying these words that have always stuck out to me.  I Timothy 4:12, “Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity.”  Now as we have been talking about perspective lets put ourselves into the shoes of Paul and Timothy.  Biblical scholars estimate that he was between 25 and 35 when Paul wrote to him.  In his own eyes, he may have seen himself as way to young to make an impact.  Even within many church circles, a pastor who is in that age range may not even see himself as equipped or ready to lead a church.  I know I was that way personally, thinking maybe once I am married, once I have kids, once I have experience, and the list went on and on.  I couldn’t see myself the way God saw me.  Maybe that is what Timothy thought of himself.  He couldn’t see Paul’s perspective or God’s view of him.  It took Paul writing to him, to encourage him, not to allow others to look down on him because of his youth.  He needed to see himself through another’s eyes, a new perspective.

The beauty of what I love in this passage is that Paul reminded Timothy that it was not about his age.  It was about his character.  To be an example.  In the way he spoke.  In the way he loved.  In his faith and his purity.   For Paul, character was of greatest importance, carrying more weight than a number that we attach to age.

As we look to those around us, to those who may be young, or old, my hope and prayer would be that we would have many more rise up to lead the next generation.  When it comes to my age I will continue to take the optimistic perspective, every passing day means an opportunity to live and that I am one day closer to meeting Jesus.

Make it Worthwhile Wednesday! God is good…