Birthdays seem to arrive far faster than they once did.  Months once dragged on between one party until the next.  Even the few days before seemed to get bogged down prior to the big day.  Now it seems that birthdays come much to fast.  I find myself less than a month away from another one.  Having a birthday is better than the alternative but does time have to move so quickly?  I barely get used to one age before it is time to hit another milestone.  My hope is to complain about this for many more years.  That is at least my goal.  But how we grow older matters as much as just getting through the day.  Here are a few keys for me moving along.

• Keep moving.  My body is almost 53 years young but keeping it healthy pays off no matter how hard it is.  I think some of my success the last few years in dealing with illness comes from trying to exercise.  Now do not imagine me as some Olympic type athlete.  No one will confuse me with a fitness model.  New knees and hips await me down the line.  But it does appear that trying to keep moving continues to work out just fine.  Most days that means going to the gym but other days it means getting outside to be physical.  Part of surviving cancer and a heart scare may be due to working out regularly.  I still hope to hit the gym wherever my rest home is located.
• Keep growing.  Never imagine you know it all.  Far too many people just exist with the same level of knowledge far too long.  Curiosity maybe killed the cat but it remains a good trait to have.  I keep learning new words as we go along that means knowing how to spell them.  Reading keeps the brain growing when you absorb new knowledge.  Technology may not be my strong suit but it serves as a challenge to grow.  Never settle for what you know at this moment.  Keep thinking as a means to mature.
• Keep hoping.  People who live by faith often are content to guard their hope.  Thinking scares them because they fear having to change.  God does not expect us to simply let our contemporary life be the end of our growing or learning.  This week I am thinking through a new series of studies that is a test of my willingness to stay current with God.  Recycling our faith is no answer for the trials of today.  One writer once said that the faith of yesterday is not meant to handle the realities of today.  We keep hoping in God each day until we are called home.  We also need to remember that once we stop going forward that we face the tendency to go backward.  You would think we know that by now but we do tend to forget. I hope some of this will stir some reflection in your journey of days.

Bro. Trey