Overview:
Author Shewanda Riley shares a personal experience of receiving an AARP membership card in the mail when she was not yet 40 years old. This experience made her think about making positive changes in her 30s to improve her life in her 50s. Riley reflects on the importance of making permanent transformations rather than just temporary shifts, and encourages readers to consider what they want to achieve in their lives. She also references 1 Timothy 5:24-25, which discusses the impact of our choices on our lives.
Several years ago, I got a great surprise in the mail: A birthday card! At first, I was excited and wondered who was so thoughtful to send me a card. My excitement soon changed to amused disappointment when I opened it and read: “Dear Shewanda L. Riley, Our records show that you haven’t yet registered for the benefits of AARP membership, even though you are fully eligible.” I re-read the first line several times to ensure I was reading the right thing. I thought, “AARP? Isn’t that for people over 50 years old?” Funny thing was that I wasn’t even 40 years old yet. How did I get an AARP membership card in the mail?
I thought that maybe they got my name mixed up with someone else’s. But how many Shewanda L. Rileys are there out there? I laughed heartily as I then looked at the red AARP card with my name imprinted on it and threw it in the trash. I will admit that getting that AARP invitation made me think about changes I needed to make in my 30s so my 50s would be the best they would be.
During this season of Lent, many of us take similar reflective looks at our lives leading up to Resurrection Day/Easter Sunday. To improve our spiritual and physical health, we give up social media, chocolate, cursing, smoking, and alcohol, etc. hoping that by sacrificing those “fleshly” desires, we will become more like Christ. Undoubtedly, giving up those things that we love passionately for 40 days once a year is a great exercise in spiritual and physical discipline. However, the key to becoming more Christ-like is that instead of just taking negative things out, we should also add positive things to our lives. For example, if you choose to give up chocolate for Lent, why not add fruits and vegetables to your diet? Instead of just giving up television, consider adding a more focused daily time of meditation and prayer.
I remember how the AARP birthday card made me think about where I wanted to be when I was 50 years old. I prayed that I would have grown spiritually, emotionally, physically, and financially. It also made me think about 1 Timothy 5:24-25, which discusses how our choices can impact much longer than we expect. Immediately, I was struck by its simple truth: our reputations, good and bad, precede us. I thought about what I wanted to do, proceeding and following me when I was 50?
1 Timothy 5:24 says, “The sins of some men are obvious, reaching the place of judgment ahead of them; the sins of others trail behind them. In the same way, good deeds are obvious, and even those that are not cannot be hidden.” Like a perfume that fills and lingers in a room, people should recognize the sweet perfume of truth, faith, and love from our lives. Regardless of whether we’ve given up everything or just kept some things hidden, I think God is waiting on us to make a choice to go from making temporary shifts and to making permanent transformations.
Happy Resurrection Weekend…celebrate Him because He lives!
Shewanda Riley is a Fort Worth, Texas-based author of “Love Hangover: Moving from Pain to Purpose After a Relationship Ends” and “Writing to the Beat of God’s Heart: A Book of Prayers for Writers.” Email her at preservedbypurpose@gmail.com or follow her on Instagram @shewandawrites.