Sometimes I philosophize, although the internet has one definition for this word, "speculate or theorize about fundamental or serious issues, esp. in a tedious or pompous way." I hope I am not pompous and not too tedious.
Anyway, mankind in general gets in trouble when they are young. Deep, right? Think about it. Men have loads of testosterone and the healthy bodies to carry them wherever that testosterone leads, whether to war or lust or ambition. Because we have a soul whose clock naturally thinks in terms of it being "now" forever, we think we will live forever. It is not a conscious thought, but rather an unconscious one. The conscious acknowledgement of death, usually when we are children and a pet or a relative dies, is traumatic. The quick child immediately connects the dots about death and finds the line ending at self.
But that is conscious. Youth, in general, in healthy people (which is much more common in this century than in past ones) brings the peak of living. Everything is new, and those who are attractive have the added bonus - or handicap - of their beauty.
So I've been thinking about where all the sex and blood letting and heartache and pain in the human race begins - and it begins with puberty and ends with old age. Maybe even ends with middle age in most. I don't see too many middle aged or old Muslims strapping bombs to themselves and trying to blow things up. When there are riots in the Middle East, pay close attention, and you will notice that everyone is young.
It's the same with sex. When do people have the most sex and, in these days, with the most people? In youth.
I've made my point. Now carry it further. Mankind is made for eternity, but his body is not. He comes into life and grows into adulthood and all is well; in fact, all may be fabulous.
Then middle age comes. Time inexorably passes (which has always fascinated me - time, relentless time) and the middle aged man begins to feel his own mortality. Lets not leave women out - when I say "man", I mean humanity in general.
Young people reject the idea of God as foolish. They don't need no stinkin' God. Middle aged people begin to wonder if there's a God and, if it hasn't happened already, become pissed off that He isn't managing things better. Or they continue to live life as fast as they can, trying to run ahead of the Grim Reaper. Silly mankind. Think of all those mid-life crises. The men who turn in the old broad for a young filly. The women who spend thousands of dollars on body surgery in a desperate attempt to hold onto their youthful beauty.
By the time people are old, you'd think they'd be trying to find God, since they are going to be meeting Him rather soon. I'm not sure that happens, but if I were approaching my death - as we all really are - I'd give a lot more thought to the afterlife - is there one, is there a God and who is He?
Isn't it funny how young people live as if their bodies are eternal, and yet, we don't see anyone from, say, 1860 around anywhere, do we? Why not? They're all gone, every last one, no matter how long he lived, he's gone by now. We, too, will all pass eventually - and everything we think we own and the world that "belongs" to us, our homes, cars, family, ets. - will all either pass on, too - or will become someone elses.
Isn't that a happy thought for Friday? Since I believe in God and I've narrowed that further down to belief in Jesus Christ as Savior/Messiah, I have the Bible and how history has borne out the Biblical text, to comfort me in my mortality. The rest of mankind? I don't know how they make it through the day.
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