Thoughts On a Drive From the Airport

On New Year’s Eve, as I drove from the Atlanta airport I heard Bryan Adams’ song, Back in the Summer of ’69. Those of you who know the song probably also remember the line Those were the best days of my life. Granted, not all of the items of a “best day” for a teenager would normally be included among the wisest day(s) of our lives. However, the song got me thinking. What are the best days of my life?

Don’t worry. I’m not going to bore you with a highlight reel, but I am going to challenge you to think about your own best days. I would like to challenge you to dig deeper than those obvious moments many of us would pick. I don’t want to dismiss them. I do want to challenge you to think about what events molded you into the person who was ready for those moments. . .your wedding, the birth of your children, the defining career moment, etc.

Those moments didn’t just happen. They were the series of interconnected events that brought you to a natural conclusion. Maybe it was friends, way back in the summer of 69, or before. Maybe it was a Sunday school teacher or pastor, or someone else who helped develop the character that allowed you to approach one of those moments with faith and confidence. Maybe the moment required strength, maybe it required faith, maybe it deserved celebration, maybe reverence.

The point of this brief writing is to remind you that your loving and compassionate Heavenly Father has known your future from the beginning of creation. He has masterminded creation. He has moved mountains. He has prepared dozens of people along your way, each one with something to contribute to your development.
2013 is past. Some of our choices may have been among the best days of our lives, some of them you might rather forget. Yet, all of those experiences are part of the molding and preparing compassion of the Holy Spirit for the events coming your way in 2014.

Romans 8:28 reminds us, All things work together for good for those who love Him. Yes, there it is. ALL THINGS. Not just the pleasant things, not just the obvious spiritual things, ALL THINGS. Now, I have probably reminded you of some events this past year you would rather have done without if you could. Sorry, but I hope you will take some time to spend with God and thank him for those events, thank him for caring for you and preparing you for the year ahead, thank him for trusting you to handle the difficult things from 2013, and giving you the practice for those events which will challenge you during the year that lies ahead.

Happy New Year


Pastor Craig