The Second Half

Today is the last day of January and it is also the last reading of the book of Job. It's been great to re-read and study this man's story. In today's reading, God continues to challenge Job with questions that he can't answer and Job repents. God then turns his attention to Job's friends and says that they will receive grace after Job prays for them (that's a whole 'nother story!) but here is what stuck out to me today. Job 42: 12 says, "So the Lord blessed Job in the second half of his life even more than in the beginning."

I turned 45 at the beginning of this month. According to life expectancy experts, I am in the second half of life. Do I consider it to be more blessed than the first half?

Sports fans know that it's really the second half that matters more. It's important to play a good first half, but the outcome is determined in the second half. And things can turn around dramatically in the second half! (Just ask any team that has come from behind to win it all).

Job had some serious trials in the first half of his life, but God used them to bring him to a deeper dependance upon God. I'm sure Job had a different outlook on what was really important after God had restored everything he had lost. The same can be true for us. There is opportunity to find new meaning and purpose for your life even in the midst of crisis and chaos.

Job had been very successful in the first half of his life and I'm guessing that after his life-changing ordeal, he saw things a little differently; that he went from being successful to being significant. He really had a story to tell after God blessed him, forgave him, and also extended grace to his friends (who didn't deserve it by the way).

So - if you are in the second half of life, do you consider it more blessed than the first? If you are still in the first half of life, think about how you would like to enter the second half. Stephen Covey says to "begin with the end in mind." That's a good principle to live by.

It's not so much how you start out, it's all about how well you finish. The second half determines how the game will end. Think about it.