Intercer Adventist News

Closer To Heaven
You are here: Home / Archives for aging

The Gift of Time

By

This week I am struck by issues with time. Not just my use of time, but our expectations for time. I learned of a young expectant couple who lost their baby at just 19 weeks. They had traded expectations for a normal pregnancy and prayed for just another month to deliver, but that time was not granted. Another family lost their wife, mother and grandmother —they should have had her for more years than that. A friend in cancer treatment has vowed to not let the little annoyances eat up her energy and time anymore. In my family someone is waiting for more information on a health issue, and answers would be appreciated NOW. Chunks of life seem tenuous and unpredictable.

I live with both ends of the time spectrum. We have two kittens and a geriatric dog—energy bursting and energy waning. We still have a parent who is nearing 100 years of age, and we have a toddler grandchild—both need naps and lots of patience. Personally, I live with the hope of possessing another active 20 years. So little time, so many wishes.

Next year, next holiday, next birthday, next season, next vacation—those are not promised for any of us yet they spread out during youth in calendars of seemingly endless supply. “See you next time!” we say to one another. We expect a lot of next times.

Occasionally I ask myself, do I really want to spend two hours watching that movie? Do I really want to spend the time to read that book? How many more opportunities will I have to be with my aging aunt, or another relative? What kind of memories do I hope to inspire in the hearts and minds of my grandchildren?

During pain, mess and boredom we want to speed up time. During fun, great food, inspiration and goodbyes, we want time to slow down. Time is a gift, not to be simply saved or used. But fully unwrap the gift, be present, savor it with gratitude. God is present in this gift.

Questions for personal journaling or group discussion:

1. How can you slow time?

2. Remember a time when God or a loved one seemed very present with you.

Karen Spruill writes from Orlando, Florida.

The post The Gift of Time appeared first on Answers for Me.

Read more at the source: The Gift of Time

Article excerpt posted on en.intercer.net from Answers for Me.

Forever Young

By

Photo by Dreamstime

Perhaps you caught the story a few years ago online: A 56 year-old inventor and author predicted that human immortality is no more than 20 years away! In preparation for this breakthrough, MIT graduate, Ray Kurzweil’s daily regimen includes ingesting 250 supplements, 10 glasses of alkaline water and 10 cups of green tea. His plan is to extend his life long enough to achieve immortality.

In his latest book, “Fantastic Voyage: Live Long Enough to Live Forever,” Kurzweil predicts that within 20 years, human intelligence will not only conquer its biological limits, (including death) but will also completely master the natural world. He predicts there will be no more disease and we won’t even need a heart! Kurzweil writes of “millions of blood cell-sized robots, which he calls ‘nanobots,’ that will keep us forever young by swarming through the body, repairing bones, muscles, arteries and brain cells.”

Is this the desperate fantasy of a man in his mid-fifties who can’t face his own mortality? More than likely it is. But let’s just suppose he is right. Is this something we would even wish for?

No doubt, most of us want to live forever. In fact, I’ve met very few people in my role as a hospital Chaplain who want to die. And yet, what would it look like if each one of us had immortality, right now?

 Can you imagine the negative impact of a person like Hitler or Manson living forever? We all know there are many persons living who are driven by selfishness, greed and a lust for power. There are those who walk among us whose hearts are bent continually on evil and destruction. What kind of world would we have to look forward to where these kinds of people have immortality?

That’s why I’m glad that Kurzweil is wrong. Man will never unlock the secret of immortality. God alone is immortal and will grant eternal life only to those who have shown by their brief stay on this planet, that they can be trusted with it. God alone will grant immortality to those who have demonstrated that they love Him supremely and love their neighbor as themselves.
Kathy A. Lewis writes from Arizona.

Read more at the source: Forever Young

Article excerpt posted on en.intercer.net from Spiritual applications.

FaceTime

By

Photo by Pixabay

I’m getting to that age (aka, old-ness) when I find myself saying, “We didn’t have THAT when I was a kid.” I’m constantly amazed at how quickly technology races forward. Just the other day I was explaining to my teenager what a “Pen Pal” was. How I used to write letters—with paper and pen and envelope and stamp—and send them to a girl my age who lived in another part of the world. “Oh, like e-mail?” she said.

Uh, yeah. Something like that.

When my husband first deployed with the US Navy, we were newlyweds. I remember standing at the pier and waving as the ship moved into the harbor and watching all the children waving as well. It made me so sad to think of the months that would go by without even hearing the sound of their parent’s voice—let alone seeing their face.

But now we have video conferencing on our cell phones! On my iPhone, it’s called “FaceTime.” With a simple touch of the screen, I can suddenly SEE as well as talk to my husband. And when he deploys again next summer, my children will also be able to see and talk to him. This is so wonderful for children in military families who struggle to live without Daddy or Mommy for six to 12 months at a time.

It’s not as good as having him home with us, but it’s also a far cry from letters my grandmother wrote when my grandfather was serving overseas. Letters that would take months to arrive and more months for responses to be received.

I’m so thankful that we don’t need pen and paper or “FaceTime” to contact our heavenly Father. It is such a blessing that at any moment of the day, I can come directly to my Lord in prayer. I don’t have to navigate through any human intermediary, wait in line for a response, leave a message at the beep, pay extra for faster downloading speeds or check to see if “you’ve got mail.” I can speak to him right from my heart.

And one day, we’ll improve on “FaceTime” when we see him “face to face” (1 Corinthians 13:12).

Read more at the source: FaceTime

Article excerpt posted on en.intercer.net from Spiritual applications.

Eternity’s Edge: New Visions for an Aging Movement: the Prequel

By

Eternity’s Edge: New Visions for an Aging Movement: the Prequel

https://pmcdata.s3.amazonaws.com/pmc-audio/2006-01-07_0.mp3

Read more at the source: Eternity’s Edge: New Visions for an Aging Movement: the Prequel

Article excerpt posted on en.intercer.net from New Perceptions Television Audio Podcast.

About Intercer

Intercer is a website with biblical materials in Romanian, English, Hungarian and other languages. We want to bring the light from God's Word to peoples homes. Intercer provides quality Christian resources...[Read More]

Lucian Web Service


Intercer is proudly sponsored by Lucian Web Service - Professional Web Services, Wordpress Websites, Marketing and Affiliate Info. Lucian worked as a subcontractor with Simpleupdates, being one of the programmers for the Adventist Church Connect software. He also presented ACC/ASC workshops... [read more]

Archives

Categories