From Middle of Life to Center of Truth - Crosswalk the Devotional - July 11

Truths observed at the intersection of faith and life by Crosswalk.com editors [View this email in your browser] [Crosswalk.com Home] From Middle of Life to Center of Truth - Crosswalk the Devotional - July 11 [Crosswalk the Devotional] From Middle of Life to Center of Truth Shawn McEvoy, Crosswalk.com Managing Editor Do not withhold your mercy from me, O LORD; may your love and your truth always protect me. [Hebrews 12:1-3], NIV I turned 40 a couple months ago. Woo-hoo. You'll pardon my "enthusiasm," I'm sure. One thing nobody tells you about turning 40 is that you ask yourself a lot of questions, sort of a checklist of making sure you have certain things right before proceeding to the most meaningful half of the game. It's like you're in the locker room at halftime of life - bandaging injuries, reflecting on the strategies of the first half - both failed and successful - and considering your options as you re-emerge to the field. One upside of this odd time (one of my most awkward since adolescence; think of me as a teenager plus a modicum of wisdom, confidence, and gainful employment. I even found a couple of zits this week for goodness sakes) is empathy. I wouldn't call what I'm going through a "mid-life crisis"… but I now understand why some people have them. I wouldn't say that agnosticism is any kind of answer to the meaning of life… but I now understand why people gravitate to it, conscientiously or not. I wouldn't say this life is the point or that this world is our home… but I get why people begin to make the most of the time they have left as they see the clock running down. The downside, however, is that I find myself prone to thinking I'm smarter than I am, to thinking so much depends upon me, to buying into answers that are all at once beyond biblical teaching in both complexity and sanity. My like-it's-on-hormones brain has me wondering about... Dinosaurs, definitions of [marriage], death, love, whom I've loved, whether I've loved, addictions, exercise, accountability, honesty, privacy, sexuality, inerrancy, accuracy, cosmology, biology, psychology, mighta-beens, coulda-beens, shoulda-beens, woulda-beens, fairness, facts, food, euthanasia, hip dysplasia, adoptions from Asia, character, selfishness, and yes… even shiny new sportscars. Good gracious. Take any one of those categories - plus many more - and I've been bogged down thinking about it. Some of my thoughts challenge my own beliefs, beliefs I've long held as established, settled. Some of my thoughts wake me up to new possibilities, or things I haven't done yet that I may still be called to. But in the end all these ideas remain merely… My. Thoughts. [Continue Reading] [Share] [Tweet] [+1] [Forward] [Get Inspired] [Send an e-Card] [Watch Online] ABOUT THIS NEWSLETTER --------------------------------------------------------------- This newsletter is never sent unsolicited. You received this email because your email address, {EMAIL}, is signed up to receive email from a Salem Web Network website. We respect and value your time and are committed to protecting your privacy. Use the links below to update your profile and subscriptions, unsubscribe from this email, or find out more about Salem Web Network (SWN). [Manage my Subscriptions] | [Unsubscribe from this List] | [Read about SWN] --------------------------------------------------------------- Salem Web Network | Copyright 2016. All rights reserved. | 111 Virginia St., Suite 500, Richmond, VA 23219