Now that I am old and gray, do not abandon me, O God. Let me proclaim your power to this new generation, your mighty miracles to all who come after me. PSALM 71:18 (NLT)

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This Friday I get to experience a good haircut from the woman who has cut my hair for a dozen years. This will be the first time since February for her to work her magic. I did get an interim cut three weeks ago from one of those places people go when they don’t know where to go, or when they don’t have anyplace else to go. It looked good at first, but it did not take long before things started popping out here and there. It takes a lot of gel to keep most of it in line these days.

It is amazing how much more gray hair there is now than twelve years ago when Khassie began cutting my hair. She used to have Magic Scissors. They were able to clip away all intrusions of gray. Sadly, she lost those shears. Now there is about as much gray as black. The pandemic has revealed another change or two. The longer my hair grows, the more I look like a fundamentalist evangelist. Either that or a member of an old-time gospel quartet. And why is my forehead enlarging? What is up with that?

I am counting on Khassie to work miracles.

Khassie herself is a miracle. She is from Southeast Asia. Her father was a government official and their family had a good life. Then one day, the government fell and was replaced with a communist system. Her father went to prison as an enemy of the state. She was a girl advancing toward her teenage years when she was placed in a sweatshop where she sewed clothes from sunup to sundown. She sat at her sewing machine all day every day. She even ate lunch there.

As you can imagine, there is a long story filled with many plot twists, injustices, hopes dashed, and fears fulfilled. After coming to America in the best way she knew how, she began applying her disciplined approach to work. She built a good life for herself and her children. How I wish you could hear her whole story!

She has a story to tell. So do you. So do I.

Look back on your life. What are the shifts and turning points which have led you to become the person you are? Where have you succeeded? Where have you failed? Where have you experienced the unmistakable hand of God? It would be good to write these down. Not much of a writer? Record them. Use audio or video resources to tell your story. Help others see God’s faithfulness through the lens of your life.

You have family members and friends who need that encouragement. They need to learn how you overcame roadblocks and setbacks. This gives them a place to stand when they face their own turning points.

You have a story to tell. Let’s begin with a simple question: How have you experienced God’s amazing grace in your life?

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I will tell the story of God’s amazing grace, his unmerited favor, over the course of my journey from black hair to vanishing gray.

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Our Father, not a day has gone by, not a moment has passed, when I did not experience your goodness, kindness, and mercy. The best times of my life have all come from your hand. The biggest obstacles I overcame were through your strength. All of my successes are evidence of your guidance and empowerment. Even through failures and rebellion you have taught me, stretched me, molded me, and shaped me. How good you are! I will take every opportunity I have to tell of your faithful and loyal love. Amen.