The days of our lives are seventy years; and if by reason of strength they are eighty years, yet their boast is only labor and sorrow; for it is soon cut off, and we fly away. Who knows the power of Your anger? For as the fear of You, so is Your wrath. So teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom. (Psalm 90:10-12)

Happy Birthday

I was born sixty-eight years ago, and while I was the center of attention, I remember nothing. My conception was unexpected and untimely. Five siblings preceded me, and the surprising news of a new baby was difficult, considering my closest sibling was only eleven months apart. There were medical concerns with my brother, and this weighed heavily on my parents. The family was not dirt-poor but grass-poor. We never went hungry, but putting food on the table was difficult. Through the gracious acts of our church family, we were provided for. Our father worked hard and did his best to provide a home. There was no air conditioning or carpets on the floor. The Jim Walter home we lived in gave us all we needed. Box fans in the windows helped move the air through the central Florida summers. Two single gas heaters warmed a small portion of the house on the rare cold days.

I remember nothing of the first part of my life in infancy, and I had no control over those days. All of my needs were met with love and care. In time, I became conscious of who I was and the family to which I was born. My language was English with an American culture. I was born in central Florida. All of my influences came from the culture surrounding me. I learned early the value of the connection with the church. Our family of eight piled into the green Ford Econovan every time the doors were open and always arrived thirty minutes early.

I had little choice about anything during my early years and formative times. I had nothing to do with my birth. My coming into the world was not under my control. As a small baby, I relied upon my family to care for and protect me. I seemed to have trusted my siblings not to sell me to some passing caravan. Living on Maryland Avenue was a romantic time of life in a Norman Rockwell setting. As I grew older, something notable changed. I began to make decisions for myself. I went to school and graduated from high school. After three years in the Army, I went to college. A few years later, I met a beautiful young lady who had experienced the same life beginnings as I. We married and were blessed with four beautiful children. They shared the same life beginnings as we did.

The beginning of a person’s life is not under their control. A child is born because of the choice of two people. They have no say, power, or influence to decide yes or no. When a child is born, the choice has been made by two people. As a young infant, the child cannot fend for themselves, requiring the attention and care of others. If a baby is left without care, they will die. This law of life is true for everyone. I speak English because I was born in an English-speaking country. If a child is born in China, they will be influenced by the Chinese culture. Every nation brings children into the world under that culture’s influence. The common factor for every human being is that no one has a choice about whether they are born.

There is a story told of a man who sued his parents for not asking him if he wanted to be born. Anyone can see the absurdity of this question. It reminds us that our beginnings came without choice. God designed the world in this fashion. When a child is conceived in the womb, God sees the child form and grow through His divine knowledge. God gives life to the seed to produce a human being. Man does not give life to the seed. Life comes from God alone. What is remarkable about the birth of a child is that, through the power of God, a man, and woman conceive a child that will become a full-size human being who will engage in life’s activities and never cease to exist. The world is full of more than eight billion souls who have come from the womb. Again, none of these billions of souls had a choice about birth.

The common factor shared by everyone is that while there was no choice about birth, God has given man a choice about another birth. Ironically, another birth that all humanity will experience is the eternal birth. Everyone is an immortal creature that will never cease to exist. An eternal birth takes place when the body ceases from life and dies. It must be noted that death kills the body, but it does not destroy the eternal nature of a human being. When I became conscious of who and what I was, I became accountable to the God who formed me. These past sixty-eight years have been a process of choice. I made good choices, bad choices, and terrible choices. Bill Hall said that life is not about the absence of regrets but the desire to live with the fewest of regrets. That has been hard to follow.

Every person enters a time of accountability to God regardless of gender, nationality, or historical time of birth. Life begins without a choice, but it will end with a choice. I had no control over my physical birth, but everything that has to do with my eternal birth is my decision and mine alone. Jesus came to offer the world a better way to choose, one that comes with everlasting life and joy. The gospel of two declares the choice of eternity is either in Heaven with God or Hell with the devil. I cannot change what has brought me into this world, but I must choose where I will spend eternity. God has given me the ability to choose right and wrong. If I choose evil, I am to blame. Jesus has provided a way for me to know a life that will set me free.

The sadness of the world is to know how many billions of people die each day unprepared for a choice they could have made. No one has power over their birth, but everyone controls their destiny. God loved the world so much that He gave His only begotten Son to show men the right choice. Celebrating a birthday is a wonderful experience; by God’s grace, more will be shared. I know I will one day remove this earthly garment of flesh and enter a world without words. The only thing that will matter is being found in Christ. That will bring joy to the choice I have made to serve the Lord. Happy birthday, friend. Are you making the right choice?