One of our schools had an electronic recycle fundraiser today. So I went around the house gathering unused devices. I was amazed at the assembled pile of obsolete equipment. As I looked at them I remembered how excited we were when each was obtained. And now a decade or so later they are pretty much useless. They just use up space and gather dust. So off they go to the recycle truck. Lest we become too discouraged about our throwaway culture I need to observe that fifty years ago cars were considered high mileage and worn out if you were fortunate enough to get 75,000 miles. Now many of us drive our cars way over a 100,000. I am pressing 200,000 on our car and it runs fine. I spoke with someone just yesterday whose car is over 300,000 miles.
The question that arises is do people grow obsolete? We live in a culture that idolizes youth and makes it very difficult for someone in their fifties to find new employment. Are nursing homes shelving for the elderly while we wait for them to die? One thing that does give us comfort is in God’s eyes we are never obsolete. Instead of replacing us with a newer model it is God’s plan to continue to upgrade us. Paul tells us in Ephesians 3 that we “may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.” Please note “all the fullness.” God’s “more than we can imagine” which appears in verse 20 is “all the fullness.” Our heavenly Father holds nothing from us and gives as we are able to handle it. His goal is to give us all there is – not 90% but 100%. We are never obsolete.
Written by Roger Bothwell on November 4, 2013
Spring of Life Ministry, PO Box 124, St. Helena, CA 94574
Rogerbothwell.org