That's Gonna Leave a Mark

Today marks my 200^th blog post. It seems like I started writing this blog just yesterday…not 200 days ago. It is amazing to me that God has continued to bless me with words to put to paper. It is amazing to me that I have a group of readers who seek out this blog on a daily basis. It is amazing to me how writing this blog has changed my life.

Today marks a milestone in my writing. A significant event for certain. So today I will dedicate my writing to some milestones in the Bible and in my life.

Milestones in Scripture

While there certainly are hundreds, maybe thousands in Scripture, I will only discuss a few here. And please note, that this is my interpretation and you may think I’m way off base. If so, let me know what you believe I’ve missed.

I was going to start with creation, but I think the bigger milestone in the beginning was that first sin. The fall of man. In Genesis 3, Moses gives the account of Adam and Eve’s first encounter with Satan and how he manipulated them into thinking his way was better than God’s way. From that moment, mankind would be seeking a Redeemer and God would provide.

The next milestone would be the establishment of Israel. In Genesis 12, Abram is called into God’s plan. God’s promise to Abram in Genesis 12:2-4 (NIV) says, “I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all people on earth will be blessed through you.”

That blessing would be Jesus. The Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John) tell us of the coming of the Messiah. The fulfillment of God’s promise to redeem His people. John says it this way. “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.” (John 3:16-17 – NIV)

The final milestone I’d like to share is the establishment of the Church. The book of Acts tells of the beginning of the Church and throughout the remainder of the New Testament, we see glimpses of the characteristics that the Church should reflect.

As Paul teaches on the relationship between a husband and wife, he slips these precious words about the Church into the passage. “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless.” (Ephesians 5:25-27 – NIV)

Milestones in my life

I have had quite a few myself, but I can only mention the few that have had real significance in my life. Events that changed me. That had an effect on who I was or am. My baptism at a small church camp in Upstate New York; the birth of my three children; the birth of my three grandchildren; the call to go on a mission trip to SE Asia.

These events have had a huge impact on my life. In a way, they define who I am. Yes, I know who I am in Christ, but these milestones have redirected my thoughts, shifted my ambitions, and transformed my focus.

Because of these milestones, I am a changed person.

Milestones in your life

What life-changing events have taken place during your lifetime? What events have had the most impact upon you? What events have changed who you are?

As you think of these milestones, there may be some disappointing or difficult times that make your list. There have been plenty in my life as well. But as I look to the positive events, they far outweigh the negative and the negative events have helped to make me a better person. I am able to appreciate the mountain tops because I’ve worked through the valleys. I pray that you will be able to say the same.

Another portion of the definition of milestone includes the idea that it can be a marker along a roadside that indicates the distance to or from a location. How are you marking the milestones of your life? What marks those significant events? How do others know that you’ve been on a life-journey and what changes do they see in your life because of that journey?

As you ask yourself these questions, please spend some time with God asking for His guidance through the milestones of your life. Seek counsel through His Word. Acknowledge His presence during the milestones. And then mark them in some way.

“Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.” (Ephesians 3:20-21 – NIV)

Grace and peace be yours in abundance,

Donna