There are a few men I admire for their accomplishments in benefiting mankind by their work. George Washington Carver is one of them. Not only for his actual physical work but for his life long commitment to God. He wasn’t some great theologian or some kind of evangelical prophet but he knew and understood that it was God alone who gave him the ability to make the work he did so impacting and useful.
Dr. Carver was not only one of America's greatest agriculturists and scientists, he was also the pioneer of the synthetics industry which has revolutionized life in this country and around the world. Some will not agree with his importance and even say his discoveries were more damaging than helpful. They are entitled to their opinions but the fact remains that many of the useful items we use today would not be in existence had Mr. Carver choose another path for his life.
When he was old and bent with years, he shared with a group of students one day the story of his single most crucial undertaking, unlocking the mysteries of the simple peanut. He first cried out, "Oh, Dr. Creator, why did You make this universe?" "Then," he told the students who were listening intently, "the Creator answered me. 'You want to know too much for that little mind of yours,' He said, 'Ask me something more your size.' So I said, 'Dear Mr. Creator, tell me what man was made for.' Again He spoke to me, and He said, 'Little man, you are still asking for more than you can handle. Cut down the extent of your request and improve the intent.' And then I asked my last question. 'Mr. Creator, Why did You make the peanut?' 'That's better!' the Lord said, and He gave me a handful of peanuts and went with me back to the laboratory and together, we got down to work."
The results of that conversation with God are history. God wanted Dr. Carver to realize that his knowledge was only partial, and that his mind was not great enough to unravel all the mysteries of the universe, or even of man. He showed him that such a simple thing as a lowly peanut had enough potential within it to keep his brilliant mind well-occupied for a lifetime.
Some who call themselves Christians claim to know more than they actually do or even more than it is possible for a believer to know, especially about heaven and the life to come. Without a deep personal relationship with Christ, they can’t help but fail to recognize how imperfect our knowledge is in this life, even of revealed truth. And what’s more they then wonder at the rejection of Christ and Christianity by unbelievers in general and by so many thoughtful people who try to arrive at the truth of God by their unaided intellect and hence fail miserably to discover a Christ who is so far beyond their normal human mind's grasp. The simple truth is that unless you know the Lord and are willing to be His student, like Paul and his student Timothy, you will never understand the deeper thing of God the Father and Christ, let alone the Holy Spirit.
Paul in 1 Corinthians 2:16 says that “For, "Who can know the LORD's thoughts? Who knows enough to teach him?" But we understand these things, for we have the mind of Christ.” Paul tells us that in order to understand Christ, we have to have Him living in our life.
Timothy, one of Paul’s closet co-workers wrote backs up Paul in Romans when he wrote in Romans 12:2 – “And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what [is] that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.”
Accepting Jesus into our hearts and lives is only the beginning of this transformation process. It takes a life time of earnestly seeking God and it’s often not until many years after we first accept Jesus that we really begin to understand our own limitations in this area.
We all go through what some might call the stages of life. Each stage has its own impact on our overall life. With each stage come both human and spiritual understanding. That is why it is so important that the earlier one accepts Jesus into his or her heart, the better.
Up and through our twenties we are in the molding years. On the human side, this is when the young person forms those habits that will direct his or her career. Then he or she finishes their school work, is judged on their initial accomplishments, establishes a home, and looks the world square in the face. On the spiritual side, it is in these formative years when a person first begins to understand just how little they know about God and the desire to seek and learn more really develops and begins to grow.
For many folks, the thirties are often the years of discouragement. It is a hard and trying time. Without the Lord as their guide, it is a time of battle without the dreams and poetry of youth. Without the Lord by their side, it can be a time of frustration without joy or peace.
The forties are often called the years of vision. It is during this time when a person finds themselves, so to speak. They usually have realized that building those castles in the air aren’t as important as they once thought and they have come to a fairly well developed understand of what God’s plan for their life is. That doesn’t they understand it all yet but they know God has a plan and will bring it about. Their dreams and aspirations are more focused and their desire to be in God’s will is more than ever a driving force in their lives. This is all based on the premise that they have that knowledge of Christ that is needed for this to take place. Without this, these years can be a hell on earth. How terrible to go from a hell on earth to a hell in the future.
In the fifties life comes to a ripening stage. These should be the years of jubilee, and person should do his best work during these times. For those who love the Lord and desire to please Him, these years are filled with wonderment, appreciation and an ever increasing and deeper relationship with Jesus. For those that don’t have a knowledge of the saving grace of our Lord face these years with a fear when they realize that more of their life is behind them than is before them. They know they are no longer indestructible and that the future for them really holds little of true value.
For a person who knows Christ, the sixties can be one of the best times of their lives. Living itself has resulting in a person having committed enough mistakes to make them often wise beyond his years. That “wisdom” God promises is finally beginning to take hold and manifest itself. Not only in the things they do but how they relate with God. Because of this they should live better and do better work than in any other decade in his life. They understand that when you are doing God’s work, no one really ever retires. God may have them doing other things but it is still His work and it is important. He has allowed them to gain a degree of not only human wisdom but Godly wisdom for His use. How wasteful it is for a person to have gained some human wisdom but not have the Godly wisdom necessary to be able to put it to a productive use. Without Godly wisdom which only comes by knowing Him, human wisdom is really only flawed wisdom.
For those whom the Lord allows to reach this stage of life, the seventies can be a great time. Some of the best work in the world has been done by Godly men and women who He has chosen to bring impact into the lives us so many in the world. It is the time when talent, experience, and insight into the frailties of mankind and an even better insight into the reality and love of God combine to make a worthy and memorable life. Often they have come to realize that what God is set forth for them to accomplish is coming to its completion as He had originally designed and that they will, at some time possibly soon be welcomed into the heavenly kingdom by Jesus Himself. Psa: 90:10 says, "The days of our years are threescore and ten; and if by reason of strength they be fourscore years, yet is there strength, labor and sorrow; for it is soon cut off, and we fly away." If that person knows the Lord, it isn’t a fearful time filled with uncertainty as it is for those who don’t know the Lord but a time that is looked upon with joy and expectation. Knowing that they have the welcoming arms of Jesus to greet them when they are called to Him.
If by chance a person reaches their eighties and is serving the Lord, not only have they usually found an understanding of life in general that is truly God given but they have hopefully come to a much better understand of the “mind of Christ” they have been seeking all their life. Those walking with the Lord see that He’s not finished with them yet and He still has work for them to accomplish for His kingdom here on earth.
Not matter when one accepts Jesus into their hearts, it’s never too late. God has a plan for you and He welcomes you into His kingdom with open arms. The question is, how long will you wait? How long are you willing to miss out on all the great things He has for you and for you to accomplish. The sooner you come to Him the better. The sooner you accept Him the happier your life is going to be. Let me rephrase the saying, “Try it you’ll like it” to “Try Him, You’ll Love Him”. Believe me, you have only bad things to loose and everything to gain.
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