{"id":58036,"date":"2023-01-18T09:03:05","date_gmt":"2023-01-18T15:03:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/?p=58036"},"modified":"2023-01-18T09:03:05","modified_gmt":"2023-01-18T15:03:05","slug":"im-not-18-years-old-anymore","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/im-not-18-years-old-anymore\/","title":{"rendered":"I&#8217;m Not 18 Years Old Anymore"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\t<p>by Zeke Flores<\/p>\n<h2>I&#8217;m not 18 years old anymore<\/h2>\n<p>My body doesn&#8217;t move as it did then; more things droop and sag, and more parts hurt and ache.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>At 18 I had very few responsibilities. I lived entirely in the moment making decisions solely based on my selfish desire for immediate gratification.<\/li>\n<li>At 18 I had far more leisure time on my hands and risked my life and health on dangerous activities and substances.<\/li>\n<li>At 18 I blew through money like I had a hole in my pocket and misused things I should have taken better care of.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>No, I&#8217;m not 18 years old anymore<\/h2>\n<p>By God&#8217;s mercy, I&#8217;ve had 44 more years added to my life (so far) and in that life, I&#8217;ve had the love of a good and wise woman added to me, along with the blessing of children and grandchildren who love me in spite of myself and my corny jokes.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>I&#8217;m not 18 anymore, and my decisions are now informed by a conscience that&#8217;s molded by God&#8217;s word and will, which helps me to see the longer road.<\/li>\n<li>I&#8217;m not 18 anymore, and though my body doesn&#8217;t move like it once did, its actions are more certain and directed toward a clearer purpose.<\/li>\n<li>I&#8217;m not 18 anymore, and where once I lived in self-satisfaction, I see I have an obligation to others around me to whom I can offer myself in a variety of ways, all of which bring more satisfaction than selfishness ever could.<\/li>\n<li>I&#8217;m not 18 anymore, and though my hair is thinning and grayer, it represents a lifetime of joy, sorrow, and tough decisions which have hopefully made me wiser and instilled character and integrity.<\/li>\n<li>I&#8217;m not 18 anymore, and where once I had no definite plans for the future, now I see more distinctly than ever God&#8217;s plan for my future and a clear way to get there.<\/li>\n<li>I&#8217;m not 18 anymore, and while I&#8217;m nowhere near the man I hope to be, by God&#8217;s grace I&#8217;m not the man I once was.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>No, I&#8217;m not 18 years old anymore.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>&#8220;<em>Gray hair is a crown of glory; it is gained in a righteous life<\/em>&#8221; (Proverbs 16:31).<\/p>\n&#8220;<em>They will still yield fruit in old age;<\/em><br \/>\n<em>They shall be full of sap and very green,<\/em><br \/>\n<em>To declare that Yahweh is upright &#8230;<\/em>&#8221; (Psalms 92:14-15).<\/blockquote>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>by Zeke Flores I&#8217;m not 18 years old anymore My body doesn&#8217;t move as it did then; more things droop and sag, and more parts hurt and ache. At 18 I had very few responsibilities. I lived entirely in the moment making decisions solely based on my selfish desire for immediate gratification. At 18 I&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[27],"tags":[775,776],"class_list":["post-58036","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-article","tag-elderly","tag-old-age"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":11010,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/what-are-your-thoughts-on-how-bad-my-marriage-is\/","url_meta":{"origin":58036,"position":0},"title":"What are your thoughts on how bad my marriage is?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"August 7, 2007","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: I've been married for 23 years and I'm no longer in love with my husband and don't desire to have sex with him. Because of this, he physically kicked me out of the bedroom a year ago and I've been sleeping on the couch.\u00a0 We don't even talk to\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Answer&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":57260,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/i-dont-love-her-anymore\/","url_meta":{"origin":58036,"position":1},"title":"I Don&#8217;t Love Her Anymore","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"December 23, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"by Greg Gwin A forty-year-old man, suffering through the classic \"mid-life crisis,\" sat down to talk to a preacher about his problems. He explained how his marriage of 20 years was no longer satisfying or fulfilling. Finally, he reached the 'bottom line.' \"I just don't love her anymore\", he said.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Article&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/12\/dejected.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":34521,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/i-know-weve-sinned-but-my-parents-are-controlling-my-life-shouldnt-i-be-able-to-make-my-own-decisions\/","url_meta":{"origin":58036,"position":2},"title":"I know we&#8217;ve sinned, but my parents are controlling my life. Shouldn&#8217;t I be able to make my own decisions?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"August 28, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: I had sex with my boyfriend about 2 months after we got together. We were friends for about a year before we became a couple. I'm 28 and he is 30 years old. We are both Christians. I'm from a Christian family, but he is not. He has been\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Answer&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":53543,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/why-didnt-god-heal-my-wife\/","url_meta":{"origin":58036,"position":3},"title":"Why didn&#8217;t God heal my wife?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"June 25, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Hi, I read some sermons from your website about the person who accepted Jesus, believe in him, and went to church, but he turned back to his old way and sinned again. It's like me now. I went to Bible college with my wife about ten years ago. We\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Answer&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":52783,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/is-it-wrong-to-pray-to-die\/","url_meta":{"origin":58036,"position":4},"title":"Is it wrong to pray to die?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"March 13, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: I am a member of the Lord's church, and I would like to know if it is wrong to pray to die. I have had a couple of incurable health problems for years, and I just can't take it anymore. It has robbed me of any chance at a\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Answer&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":41721,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/did-i-sin-by-not-talking-to-my-stepfather\/","url_meta":{"origin":58036,"position":5},"title":"Did I sin by not talking to my stepfather?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"January 10, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Hi, My stepfather passed away unexpectedly and I feel extremely guilty for not reaching out beforehand and trying to save his soul. He \"raised\" me, but love from my stepfather was never shown. I don't remember him ever telling me he loved me and only twice telling me he\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Answer&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58036","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=58036"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58036\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=58036"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=58036"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=58036"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}