MAKE ME YOUNGER!

Last week, my friend Lawrence showed me an article about Emile Ratelband, a self-proclaimed Dutch positivity guru. Apparently, he petitioned a court in Holland to officially change his age, with the hope  of becoming 20 years younger. The 69-year-old TV personality requested that his birth date be altered, declaring him to only be 49. He stated, "With this freedom of choice, choice of name, freeness of gender, I want to have my own age. I want to control myself." (Source: PD news services)

 So many things are upside-down in this story, that I don't know where to begin. For starters, it reflects the self-indulgent, "have-it-your-way" philosophy that permeates our times. Even if the court granted his outrageous request, does that actually change the fact that he was born 69 years ago? No amount of wishful thinking can alter that, any more than a court declaring me to be an aardvark, turns me into one. Reading the article, I pondered, "There's something else going on here." Sure enough, in the last sentence, Ratleband revealed that he wants to avoid age discrimination—especially on dating websites. Bingo! Lowering his age will help him "score with younger chicks", hence a desire to "officially" drop 20 years in age. 

 God, in his infinite wisdom, created each of us to be born when we were and where we were. Acts 17:26 informs us that God chose the exact times and places where we would live. It's not an accident that you're living where you are, when you are, at the age you are. God chose that Mr. Ratelband be born at the exact time he was, making him 69 years old. Our age is part of who we are...and it's beautiful. Psalm 139:14 declares, "I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made." Verse 16 states, "All the days ordained for me were written in your book." 

On a recent prayer walk, observing the leaves falling, God reminded me that autumn is the most beautiful of seasons. Being the autumn of life, I'm beginning to appreciate that. The Lord compensates us in our older years with many wonderful gifts, such as greater wisdom, patience and a longing for eternity. There is beauty in every season of life, whether young or old (Eccl.3:11). So before going to court to change your age, pause for a moment and thank God that you are the perfect age...the age he intended you to be.