I never thought much about my age until I turned 65 two months ago. I know some of you are thinking, “Wow, she is old!” while others think, “No, my friend, you are not old!” I have been pondering why this age feels different, and I think I have part of the answer. Insert drumroll: My life is not what “I” expected it to be at this age. My life is good – very good – but not what I expected. I thought life would be easier and slower at 65!  

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As I listened for God to help me process my thoughts and feelings, I read these words on a calendar, “In place of expectations, He gives us invitations!” Wow! Now that is a different perspective. I did a word search of “expectation” in the Bible and found this verse: “My soul, waits silently for God alone, For my expectation is from Him” (Ps. 62:5 NKJV). Insert drumroll: My life is not what “I” expected because God is inviting me into new expectations of deeper relationship!  

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In John 3:4, Jesus is asked, “’What do you mean?’ exclaimed Nicodemus. ‘How can an old man go back into his mother’s womb and be born again?’” (NLT). Jesus had just told Nicodemus that one had to be born again to receive eternal life in Heaven, so Nicodemus assumed that Jesus literally meant to be birthed again from a woman. “Born again” can be translated as “born from above.”  Nicodemus needed a spiritual rebirth to be free from the sin that separated him from God.  

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I was born again when I accepted Jesus as my Savior at the age of nine, which is definitely not old. However, I did not understand what it looked like to follow God’s plan until many years later, so I formed my own expectations for life. As I look back over my 65 years, I feel like I have been born again, again, and again every time I chose to follow God’s plan or expectation for my life! God is restoring my broken pieces and making me more like Jesus each day. I do not feel a rebirth each day, but I can see spiritual changes when I look back. Now I recognize His expectations for my life and accept His invitations to grow in relationship with Him.  

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He has and is teaching me new ways to live for Him. I am growing in my relationship with God. I am being challenged by studying the Bible. I am growing in discernment and wisdom. Discernment is like an awareness between truth and error, while wisdom sorts through all that awareness to choose a good course of action and provide guidance. I need these attributes more and more, so I accept these invitations to follow God’s expectations.

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Through the years, God has revealed to me that I have been and can relapse into being a people pleaser, which is a heavy human expectation to carry. When you feel a weight that is heavy on your shoulders, pause and ask, “Is this an expectation from me or God?” We sabotage ourselves when we take on heavy expectations because they are simply too much for us to carry. What is from God doesn’t weigh us down, so trade heavy expectations for the invitation and lightness of grace and real love!  

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He also revealed to me that meeting the expectations of others and being loving are two entirely different actions. Expectations from others and the guilt they cause are prison bars that God never intended for us. We are never, anywhere in Scripture, told to meet the expectations of others! We must release each other from one another’s expectations so we can meet God’s expectations. He has different expectations for each of us, but He commands us to love and forgive each other at every age to live freely!

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I can now accept that my life is not what “I” expected at 65. My life is fuller, not easier or slower, because God is revealing more expectations to me as I accept His invitations to serve Him!

The question for today is, “How can someone be born when they are old?”  The answer is that anyone can experience a SPIRITUAL REBIRTH at ANY age to be free of sin and live for eternity in Heaven with God!  

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But the Bible also gives us a warning: Luke 12: 40 says, “You also must be ready all the time, for the Son of Man will come when least expected” (NLT). If you have not experienced spiritual rebirth through accepting Jesus as your Savior who paid the price for your sins, do not linger, because He could return to defeat Satan and gather His believers at any moment!

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Father God, we thank you for giving us Jesus so we can be born again! We love you!