Choose One Thing

 Choose One Thing When a person reaches a certain age, looking at an old photo album can be depressing. Plodding through the hours and days of our lives, we barely notice the changes that creep over us merely because of the passage of time on bodies that God did not intend to last forever. Weight fluctuates, usually in an increasing direction. Skin sags and muscle tone softens. Lines appear—hopefully due to frequent laughter—and hair grays or simply disappears. Any thought of flaunting our physical looksor skills is a losing proposition. When comparing a recent picture of us to one from a few decades ago, we ask ourselves, "How did this happen? I've changed so much!" The more realistic members among us grimace at this change but realize it is inevitable. Psalm 90:10 gently informs us that a human lifetime averages between seventy and eighty years, and it is the exception—"by reason of strength"—that some few reach or even surpass the upper figure. Passing beyond this limitation may be a sign of blessingor healthy living or merely good genes that one had nothing to do with or some combination of these. The maturation process from infant to toddler to adolescent to adult to middle age and then to old age is just the way life goes. And, as Moses writes in the same psalm, our days vanish into the past with astonishing swiftness, and "we finish our years like a sigh" (Psalm90:3-6, 9-10). More spiritually oriented brethren—including us, right?—take this observation another step: Has our spiritual change, heading the other direction, been as dramatic? As our faces and bodies have slouched toward the way of all flesh, has our characterimproved to a similar degree? Have our improving interior beauty and strength counterbalanced our diminished exterior vitality? Do we have human nature on the run despite our decreasing physical capacity to go faster than about two miles an hour? Despite our decreased vigor and perhaps chronic aches and pains, can we fill the roles in the church that the apostle Paul instructed Titus to teach? . . . that the older men be sober, reverent, temperate, sound in faith, in love, in patience; the older women likewise, that they be reverent in behavior, not slanderers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things—that they admonish the young women . . .. (Titus2:2-4) The entire passage assumes an upward trajectory of spiritual growth throughout the church with the older members, experienced and thus superior in wisdom, assisting the ministry in teaching the younger ones to help them prosper in God's way and avoid the worst potential mistakes. The process is based on what a properly functioning, loving family should do to prepare its members for maturity and success. How, then, are we doing? When we look at our spiritual course from the time of God's calling to now, what does our graph look like? Most likely, it is a jagged set of peaks and valleys. But what does the trend line tell us about our growth?It should at least be slanting upward toward righteousness and godliness, and the steeper, the better. But is it? Be honest. After a zealous spurt in our early years of conversion, has the upward angle declined? Have we plateaued? Or, God forbid, have we paralleled the regrettable spiritual plight of the Hebrews? "For though by this time youought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the first principles of the oracles of God; and you have come to need milk and not solid food" (Hebrews5:12). Paul is equally harsh on the Corinthians: And I, brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual people but as to carnal, as to babes in Christ. I fed you with milk and not with solid food; for until now you were not able to receive it, and even now you are still not able; for you are still carnal. (ICorinthians 3:1-3) Each must judge his or her own spiritual state. However, knowing human nature and the tendency of people to become complacent, God does not mince words (see Romans 13:11-14; Ephesians 5:14). He knows we become weary (see Matthew 11:28; II Thessalonians 3:13; etc.) and discouraged (see Psalm 42:5; II Corinthians 4:17; Philippians 4:6-7; I Peter 5:7; etc.). However, He expects us to persevere, to run the race to the end (Philippians3:14; Hebrews 10:36; 12:1; James 1:12; Revelation 3:11; etc.). So, we must occasionally rouse ourselves from our self-satisfaction or coasting along and prod ourselves to resume the struggle to put off the old man and don the new. What do we do? If we have become lethargic about spiritual growth or have just gotten out of practice, in a spurt of desire to repent and please God, we will probably try to rush to make up for lost time. But in trying to do everything, we may ultimately accomplish little or nothing. Our zealous spiritual rejuvenation could sputter and die because the deficit has become so overwhelmingthat discouragement filters back in, and we may be tempted to give up. We can avoid that by being deliberate about our spiritual recovery. As a doctor will say after a physical injury, "Keep moving, but you should start slowly." An athlete who has blown out a knee or ruptured his Achilles' tendon cannot get backin the game the next day. To heal properly, he must work up to his former abilities through steady, deliberate rehabilitation. This process will likely take months of incrementally more strenuous physical therapy to return him to full strength. In this matter, we are both doctors and patients. As doctors, we must assess the damage, prepare a recovery plan, and enforce limits to regulate our growth to avoid being overwhelmed. As patients, we must sign on to the plan, keep our eyes fixedon the goal, and pledge to finish the course of treatment. Without commitment and endurance, we will not only not reach the goal, but we will also likely end up back where we started—or worse. So, start small: Choose one thing and work to make it a habit. Choose a "small" or "easy" thing at first. Make sure it is not some overarching principle like "love" or "faith." Instead, find a section of Scripture—perhaps a passagein one of the New Testament's epistles—and pick one of the apostle's suggestions. For instance, Romans 12-15 is full of Christian living advice on various situations. So are Ephesians 4:25-5:7; Colossians 3:5-4:6; I Thessalonians 5:12-22; and others. Choose one, say, "Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth" (Ephesians4:29), ". . . be patient with all" (IThessalonians 5:14), or "[Employees], obey in all things your [bosses] according to the flesh, . . . fearing God" (Colossians3:22). Find one problem you know you need to overcome and concentrate on doing just that. Any of these will be difficult, which is why we should prioritize one thing to work on. Choosing one weakness to overcome does not allow us to leave the others undone (Matthew23:23). Still, it will help us to focus and strengthen our character steadily toward God's righteousness, even as our physical strength inevitably moves in the other direction! - Richard T. Ritenbaugh