A while ago, I heard a
song that (barring a few crass references) got me thinking about the last couple decades of my life. Now, I'm only 44, and that hardly qualifies for large quantities of reminiscence. Still, since I can't change my past, the best I can do is pass on what little wisdom I may have acquired.
I must first make a few disclaimers:
- I am a follower of Jesus Christ, and I believe that the Bible is the inerrant Word of God.
- I grew up in a broken home.
- I am a veteran of the U.S. Army.
- I have never been financially wealthy.
- I spent the majority of my "career years" as a pastor of worship for modern evangelical churches.
- I have willingly left that line of work, nearly 2 years ago.
- I have never started or maintained my own business.
- I have spent most of my life in Southern California, but am now a grateful "transplant" to Northwestern Montana.
OK, on with the program. So as to refrain from the appearance of judgmentalism, I will address this letter to my 18-year-old self. Some of these points, I have done. Others, I wish I had. Those of you who know me will know which is which.
Without further adieu...
________________
Don't even think about going into debt for a college education: Unless you're going after becoming a corporate attorney (perish the thought!) or hit the lottery, that monstrous obligation will haunt you for DECADES to come. (Notice how I didn't say "become a doctor". I'd sooner go through life with my hands tied behind my back and a leash around my neck. Same thing.) No, spend your youth EARNING a living. Even a modest income, properly stewarded, is better than spending buckets of borrowed capital on a slip of paper (a "degree") which probably won't mean a darn thing in the world you will see unfolding. Don't pay to learn... GET PAID to learn a business or trade. Then, become the leader.
Learn to MAKE or BUILD things. DO something with the energy of your youth. Pursue a career and life-path that will allow to you to step back from your efforts and say, "Look at THAT. I made that. I'm responsible for that coming to be." There is a world looming in the distance which will not be friendly to those who cannot build a dwelling, cultivate a vegetable garden, hunt and prepare one's own meat and stitch up a wound. Spend a significant amount of time and energy learning how to survive in the wilderness. Be willing to do things, to solve problems, which most other people will avoid. There is tremendous value in that.
Stay in shape. Don't let yourself become lazy or complacent in the area of physical fitness. Stay strong. Create a lifelong habit of physical exertion. You never know when you're going to have to run harder, swim farther, climb higher, or carry more than you ever thought you could. Be ready.
Buy fertile, wooded land as soon as you possibly can. Build a modest, simple, small and smart home on it, BEFORE you marry. If you can do this, without getting bogged down in debt (preferably debt-free), you will alleviate yourself of the "life of quiet desperation" which Thoreau warned against.
Marry a woman whose Bible is worn out from use, and who is beautifully contented with the simple life God gives her. A woman who spends very little on the things which mean little, and who is not afraid to pay cash-on-the-barrel for things that will last for decades (Proverbs 31). Pour all of your manly love and affection into her alone, and don't waste your character on pursuing anyone else -- not even the thought of anyone else (Matthew 5:28). And marry young. Start having children (lots of them) as soon as possible. Do not ever say something diabolically foolish, like "I don't know if we can afford to have any more than 2 children." Be fruitful. Multiply. Trust God that He is better at providing for you and your family's needs than you will ever be.
Don't get comfortable in this life. This world is not -- I repeat, NOT -- your home, if you have wisely and rightfully put your trust, your very life in the hands of King Jesus. Be ready to say, "Where He leads me, I will follow. What He feeds me, I will swallow."
Learn how to get along with all kinds of people. Make the Golden Rule your life's theme.
_________
Well, it's getting late and I'm getting sleepy. Perhaps there will be a Part 2 to this post.
What would
you say to someone much younger than you? Leave a comment below.
