Call it the start of the most famous career of all time-

Or, the beginning of the end for a man who, now 30, has just 3 years left.

The Baptism of Jesus, which Barth called, ‘the summary of the essence of the Gospel,’ reveals to us that God is no longer hidden in the heavens, but has come to be with us in the person of Jesus. It is a milestone of milestones in the greatest life ever lived. But is it a milestone that points to torture and death – or is it one of great victory and triumph?

Mitch Albom famously asked Maury if he feared getting old. “Fear it? I embrace it!,” he said, surely realizing that in a society that places a decisive accent on youth, this is crazy talk. After all, the modern conception is that after age 21 we all go downhill. We equate aging with decay – failing to realize that when we age we also grow – we GROW old.

What this means for Jesus at his baptism, and for you and me at every stage in our lives, is that there is something for us to learn, do, treasure, see, and experience at every bend in the road. 21 was that enviable age in which I could still fit into those jeans – but the pitiable time of missed opportunities I was simply too ignorant to identify (imagine buying Microsoft stock in 1984?!?)

The envy of youth often stems from failed realizations of the benefits reaped from latter stages, including this one. So what is keeping us from deeply valuing where we are this very moment? What dissatisfactions are overriding our memories to make us think that any time other than the present was, ‘the good old days?’ What practices might we engage to help us truly savor and life in the now?

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Reading

Everything Must Change – Brian McLaren

Heroic Leadership – Chris Lowney

Generation Ex-Christian – Drew Dyck