I turned 60 a couple of days ago and that has me thinking. It seems that I should be able to have 10 “words of wisdom” to leave for my kids and grandkids. The following is what I came up with for my list.

Words of Wisdom

1. Make Christ the center of your life – and KEEP Him there.
It took me far too long to finally learn this and there are many painful lessons I have learned as a result. But since I’ve learned to keep Christ at the center, and to stay focused on Him, a lot of other things have come into focus. It doesn’t make life easy or make everything turn out magically to my benefit, but when rough times come, I have a solid anchor that keeps me safe and secure.

2. Learn to eat properly healthy
I’ve struggled with weight almost my whole life and it comes down to not knowing how to eat properly when I was young, which set the pattern for the rest of my life. I know it is my own choices now, but I often wish that perhaps when I was much younger I hadn’t learned to “get your money’s worth” at a buffet, or to clean my plate completely even if I wasn’t hungry. Obviously those aren’t the only reasons I have a weight problem, but my “wisdom to pass on” is to learn proper healthy eating early and teach your children well.

3. Learn to think
Too often, I have responded to a thought or an issue with a knee-jerk reactionary answer, and if I was actually asked why I thought that, I didn’t have a good answer. I’ve learned that to truly think about an issue (or anything) is to stop and analyze it, evaluate the truthfulness of it, and how it fits with my worldview, which I want to be Christ-centered. And when it comes down to it, my worldview affects how I perceive everything. And based on my worldview, I need to evaluate the truth of the statement or issue, the coherency of the issue, and then the implications to my personal life.

So, yes, truly thinking about something takes a little time. Just a couple of days ago I read Proverbs 15:28 – “The heart of the godly thinks carefully before speaking; the mouth of the wicked overflows with evil words.” So learn to think carefully and thoroughly about anything.

4. Read as much as you can and read wisely
I love reading. I always have from the time I first learned how to read. And reading should not stop when school stops. Keep on reading. Read for pleasure. But also read to learn. I don’t always agree with what I am reading, but it makes me think. Reading exposes me to ideas I may have never considered. And those ideas can cause me to look at what I believe and make sure that I am correct. Sometimes a different perspective may let me realize that I haven’t fully considered everything and there may be room to expand or alter what I believe. Part of growing is changing, so be open to changing your opinion.

5. Love deeply and don’t miss a chance to tell those that matter that you love them
Love isn’t a casual thing and it should never be taken lightly. When you love someone, be it a spouse, child, a friend, love them with your whole heart. Learn to be totally open in your love. Don’t keep secrets. Don’t lie. Don’t miss a chance to tell someone that you love them. When my late wife was so sick so quickly and they took her for exploratory surgery, I had no idea that when I kissed her and told her I loved her that it would be the last time I would be able to do so. I’m forever grateful that I was able to tell her one final time.

We never know what the next minute may bring, so don’t miss the chance to say I love you whenever you can.

That is my top 5 “words of wisdom”. To round out my list of 10, I’ll list them and try to expand on them tomorrow.

6. Don’t be afraid to laugh

7. Make the most of your time

8. Forgive quickly

9. Have good friends

10. Jesus. Others. You.

Use the comments below and let me know what would you have changed? You can use mine, you can add new things in, but please remember that there can only be 10.