iRetire4Him Show 121: Hope for Tomorrow

Jim Brangenberg: Did you know that when you retire, your calling doesn't retire? Your calling is a lifetime calling, and if you're still around, God's not done with you yet. You've tuned into iRetire4Him, the voice and resource of the Retirement Reformation, an organization dedicated to you, the retiree who loves Jesus and wants purpose for all of your days.

Bruce Bruinsma joins us today and as the founder of the Retirement Reformation, he's here to encourage and walk with you through those quote unquote retirement years. And I'm your host, Jim Brangenberg. Check us out online, retirementreformation. org, retirementreformation. org. Hebrews 11 one says faith shows the reality of what we hope for. It is the evidence of things we cannot see. In all this, we know that faith gives us hope for tomorrow when today seems a little bleak. Hope and faith are intricately wound together in a cord of three strands with our God at the center. I've always wondered how people keep on going when there is no hope.

Billions of people on this planet, many of them living next door to you, don't know Jesus. Therefore, they have no hope for tomorrow. It's no wonder our pre believing friends who are retired are afraid to die and try to do everything they can to avoid it. Whereas believers, we could face tomorrow with a certainty that our lives are never going to end. They will just transition to a new body and a new dimension where hope and faith will no longer be necessary because we will be surrounded by the all encompassing blanket of love and life that heaven will bring. So let's talk about hope for tomorrow and how it impacts us. Today, Bruce, what does it mean to have hope for tomorrow?

Bruce Bruinsma: Hope for tomorrow is the power and the passion that allows you to go on from today to the this day to the next day. When we talk about hope for tomorrow it means that you have confidence that there is a future that will be God honoring, that will be passionate, that will give you energy, and that will allow you to make the difference that God wants us to make in the environment that he puts us in.

Whether it be being a caregiver for a family member that is very ill, or whether it is an opportunity to speak to a crowd of a thousand. To have hope for tomorrow gives you the context for the beginnings of today.

Jim Brangenberg: So where would you say your hope comes from?

Bruce Bruinsma: Oh, my hope comes from the realization that the connection that God makes available to us through the power of the Holy Spirit is able to communicate with us and we're able to actually hear and listen to the direction that he is giving us in any given set of circumstances. For some of our audience, that's going to sound really weird. How in the world does that happen? I would urge you to grab a copy of Living the Fruitful Life and work your way through that to see how you too can experience the connection with the Holy Spirit, with God's wisdom, with his energy and with his plan.

And that is what in fact gives you hope because you are hearing it, but you're not seeing it. And that connection between hearing what God's plan is and then taking the steps to carry it out and then seeing the results gives you additional hope for what it is that is tomorrow.

Jim Brangenberg: This is all kind of an ethereal conversation. I want to make it concrete right from the beginning because as retirees - I quote unquote could retire, I suppose, at my age - but as being 55 plus, both of us have experienced times where our hope waxes and it wanes, so it increases and it decreases. Certainly when we have days where we don't feel as healthy, we don't feel as hopeful. Yet we know these bodies are going to wear out. But, Bruce, why does our hope do that whole waxing waning thing, that increased decreasing thing?

Bruce Bruinsma: As near as I can understand that, and that's a really good question and maybe a difficult one, but from my experience, it's when we are confronted with something new , a surprise, something unexpected. Our initial reaction to that is very, typically, at least in my case, is a very human one. Could be anger, could be surprise, could be fear, could be any of those emotions. And then as that starts to embrace you, as that starts to overcome you, then there's that voice that reminds you, wait a minute, this is part of something more, something bigger and allows you to take the next step.

Let me give you a very practical example. Yesterday I had the opportunity to get on my hands and knees and to clean up a mess on the floor. And my first reaction to that was nothing to do with hope. It was to do with, you gotta be kidding me. I'm on my hands and knees on the floor, cleaning up this mess. And as I was in the middle of that is when the voice showed up and said, Bruce, you've got something to learn from this experience today. And this is as basic an experience as you could possibly get.

And so to be able to help understand perhaps a better understanding of my current role, a better understanding of what it means to love someone and to be able to take action, that comes as a result of that relationship. And so it's, it is ethereal in the sense that the practical part of it is the growth that comes from whatever experience it is that God has put in front of you, and whether it's on your hands and knees or whether it's getting a phone call, or whether it's visiting with the doctor, or whether it's visiting with your family, and you get a shock.

And so again, the normal reaction is a physical one with emotions and so on. But then you realize that in fact, because we have eternal hope, and because we have hope for the next step, and because we have access to the wisdom of God and the Holy Spirit in what we learn from the Bible , we're able to take next steps that are probably different than we would take in our human nature. I certainly have found that to be true.

Jim Brangenberg: I think circumstances sometimes can rob us of our hope because we miss the fact that nothing that ever happens to us comes as a surprise to God, yet there are things that happen to us that surprise us, that cause us to lose hope. And there are many people listening today that are thinking, as we record this, the stock market has just had a major adjustment. Inflation's been high for years. Groceries are up 40 or 50 percent in the last four years. Fuel prices remain up about 30 or 40 percent from where they were four years ago. And people are losing hope.

They're like, how am I going to pay my bills? They get hopeless. And it's good for us to just be realigned, to get that refresher, that free refill on our hope to remember this life is but a short period of time. And that Jesus promised that we'd always have what we need for those who love Him and are called according to His purposes. That we're not supposed to worry about what we should eat and what we should wear and where we will live. That's not what we're supposed to worry about, but hope sometimes gets sucked out of you when things look a little ugly.

Bruce Bruinsma: I think that is when it happens exactly. And to find that the the answers to that, whether they be a micro problem or something that in our human sense, we would say is a big deal or a major one , to be able to navigate our way through that and to refine the hope and to hold on to it. When we think about the fruit of the spirit, because that is what God imbues us with and allows us to be able to handle what otherwise would be a hopeless situation. So to look at it through that lens of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness, self control, and to be reminded of that gives us the tools to be able to walk down the pathway that will continue to have hope rather than hopelessness.

Jim Brangenberg: We're talking about a hope for tomorrow because all of us have a hope for tomorrow. If you are a follower of Jesus, you've got hope for forever. But there are days where our hope wanes. There are days when our hope just, our hope tank is just low. Sometimes it's never empty, but it sure seems like it gets or like it's running on fumes. Where do we get our hope for tomorrow?

Bruce and I are going to continue this conversation after we talk with Doug Hunter and hear his story of how he's living out his faith in his quote unquote retirement years. You're listening to iRetire4Him. Hey, check us out online while you have a chance. Retirement Reformation. org Retirement Reformation. org. We'll be right back.

Jim Brangenberg: Hey, welcome back to iRetire4Him. As we do in every second segment of every show We bring on somebody who's in their quote unquote retirement years to share a little bit of their story and what how God is using them on a day to day basis today. We got Doug Hunter. He's coming to us from the quote unquote Atlanta region, because Atlanta, if you've driven it, is about 90 miles from top to bottom. So where he is in Atlanta, nobody really knows, but Doug Hunter, welcome to iRetire4Him.

Doug Hunter: Oh, it's great to be with you, Jim. And you're right about that. Driving Atlanta is an adventure.

Jim Brangenberg: It is. It's not for the faint of heart either, but that's okay. That's okay. All right, so Doug, how long have you been quote unquote retired?

Doug Hunter: As you may imagine, I'm not sure that, that I'm ever going to apply that terminology to me. Age wise, I could have retired with my, peers. If you go early, that would have been 55 or 65 and that's, I'm 76 now. So that's a while ago. That's a, 11 or 21, depending on whether you consider it an early retirement thing.

Jim Brangenberg: So what I want to know is, who told you? Who told you that retirement wasn't biblical? How did you come to an understanding that even though the church kind of promotes the American dream of retirement, that it's not biblical? How did you grasp that understanding? Who told you?

Doug Hunter: Actually, I discovered it when I was teaching Old Testament early in my walk with the Lord. And about 1980 I was involved with Bible study fellowship and in the year that I started teaching was related to the history of Israel, which talks about that, the whole background of Israel and how God put all of those things together.

One of the things that struck me, I was young in my career and everything at that point, but it struck me that the only place I saw retirement in any of that was when there was discussion of the Levites retiring. And as I continued to study, I just couldn't find it anywhere else. So since I wasn't a Levite and probably would never be one, I started to think, my mindset became, I'm just not going to retire. I'm going to continue to ask God all the way through for assignments. And as long as he's got an assignment, I'm going to report for duty.

Jim Brangenberg: Okay. But there's peer pressure. I know there's peer pressure in your fifties, sixties, seventies, cause I'm in my fifties and I've been feeling the peer pressure. Everybody goes, so when are you going to retire? What are you going to do when you retire? People are asking you that question all the time. I know they are because they're asking me that question. How do you handle the peer pressure?

Doug Hunter: My response has always been the things that I'm doing. I love, I don't want to quit. They make a difference. They mean something. And long as I'm making a difference, especially in the context of the kingdom of God and making a difference for him and because of him and loving what he brings my way, I have no reason to want to stop. And God's been really gracious. The assignments have been flexible, so I'm not missing anything. I can play golf, I can play with the grandkids and spend time with them. All of those things are available, but I still follow my assignments.

Jim Brangenberg: But there's still those conversation over cards or over bridge or over dinner where your friends are feeling guilty because you're still going at it. And they've checked out. Have you been able to convince anybody who's checked out to check back in again? I like to use the description, they're sitting on the side. They're not on the sidelines. They're actually in the stands at the football game and they're watching everybody do everything in the kingdom , and maybe we need to get them back in the game.

Not maybe, we need to get them back in the game! But instead of running the plays, now we need them as a coach on the sideline. Have you ever been able to convince anybody to get out of the stands and get back on the sideline?

Doug Hunter: Oh, yeah. Yeah. And a lot of that comes from discussions about all the things that God's built into them. There's an assumption in our conversation right now that a lot of the people that I'm talking to are Christ followers and as a Christ follower you become aware that God has been building into you and that you sense that you can go back and see the evidence of that.

And so the conversations of, okay, why has he done that? Why is he built into you? If not to use it as in some way, all the way through. And of course you get lots of biblical stuff from Paul and others about running the race until the end. And to live is Christ to die is gain, but that whole segment, not that particular verse, but that whole idea of running the race that all fits.

So yes, when people really think about that and they realize that they really loved what they did or that they love the possibility of making use of all their knowledge and not just dumping it, there are things that we can find together that are really exciting and great places to reenter the kingdom and the kingdom assignment phase of your life in the later stages.

Jim Brangenberg: God used you at Charleston Southern. He's used you at Pinnacle Forum. You currently serve on several boards of directors. What have you learned about who God created you to be in your retirement years?

Doug Hunter: Part of it has been from people who've mentored me over the years leading up to this stage. I've watched a lot of those who've gone before me and I've watched how they've handled it. And I've appreciated it because so many of them, guys like Larry Burkett and Ron Blue, and just a lot of those people that I had the privilege to, to work alongside, to see how they moved gracefully out of maybe the front lines, but into the support and maybe from being the upfront microphone guy to being one who equips the new generation.

And of course the next generation is a huge issue always. And so looking at the possibilities and exploring opportunities to build into the next generation, gosh it's not hard to sell that and the joy of that. And that's what motivates me at this point.

Jim Brangenberg: Imagine what our country would be like, Doug Hunter, if everybody's sitting in a 55 plus neighborhood in Florida or Arizona who's a believer would come to that same realization and say I'm gonna get the heck out of here. I gotta move into a neighborhood with young families. I gotta get involved in a church where I can pour my life into the next generation instead of being checked out, playing golf all day. Imagine imagine with me, how do you think that would impact if we actually started remobilizing everybody back out of Florida and Arizona into our country? Do you think our country would be different?

Doug Hunter: Oh, it would, it would. And that idea is one of the things that's got to be keeping guys like you and I driving because there's always that potential. God has made, has moved in different times. I think of Jeremiah Lamphere and in 1857, when he started the prayer movement that became the Great Awakening, where 10 million people came to Christ, those kinds of things can happen. God can make those things happen. So being faithful to what he's called us to do and encouraging others to do that too, you just never know when he's going to take it and explode and do as again, Paul says, exceeding abundantly beyond all that we ask or think according to the power at work within us.

Jim Brangenberg: So what I'm hearing you saying is, if somebody's listening today and they've checked out, gone on vacation. They need to evaluate where can they go next. What can God do with them? Because you're still experiencing flourishing and fun and life to its fullest. It's 76. You're not missing out on anything.

Doug Hunter: No, nope. I drive with the top down in my convertible and my wife loves to read to me while I drive and we spend wonderful time with the grandkids. I don't miss any of that. It's all a part of what God's got in his assignment for me. But at the same time I can sit in a meeting like this with a group of guys and gals or anywhere in the world and make a difference, or I can get on a plane and make a difference. And they like it because I'm an old guy and I still do that.

Jim Brangenberg: I like it because you're an old guy. You're chronologically superior, technically not old, but I like it because you've poured your, a lot of your life into Martha and I, and we're grateful. Doug Hunter, thanks for being on iRetire4Him today.

Doug Hunter: It's a joy, Jim. And thanks for doing what you're doing.

Jim Brangenberg: Yeah, it's an honor. We'll be right back with more on iRetire4Him.

Jim Brangenberg: Hey, welcome back to iRetire4Him as we're talking today about a hope for tomorrow. Sure enjoyed that conversation with Doug Hunter as he's living out his faith in his retirement years and just waiting to see what God has for him next. Bruce , that's the conversation you wanted to have today. We're still in a one off, not a series on this one. Why are we talking today about a hope for tomorrow?

Bruce Bruinsma: I think we're talking about the hope for tomorrow because the circumstances in my life now are very challenging you've got some major challenges in your life . And I think it's brought us to this conversation. Matter of fact, I'd like to expand it just a little bit and not just talk about hope for tomorrow, but the process of walking in faith and having hope for tomorrow, because the hope is not just the hope, is a mindset and a set of thought processes.

Whereas walking in faith are the actual steps that we are taking in the context of either a feeling of hopelessness or challenge. And so we tend to lose hope when we are challenged, but when we walk with faith and hope, then we have both energy, insight, encouragement, and endurance. That if we just allow ourselves to rest in the hopelessness spot, it saps all of our energy, it saps all of our direction, it saps all of our wise decision making. But when we are walking in faith with hope for tomorrow, we put those two things together. I think that makes the whole huge difference. At least it certainly does for me.

Jim Brangenberg: I think it's the perspective thing is so important, Bruce, because when things get tough and as they do, as we all get older, things will get tougher because our bodies wear out. It doesn't matter. You don't have to be in your seventies or eighties to see that happening. You start in your forties and your fifties. You're like, Hey, Oh, I didn't use to wake up stiff. Getting out of bed gets a lot worse than that, but it's this reminder. It's almost like we need to do a mental paradigm shift every morning to remember this world is not my home. This is not my eternal resting place. What I experienced today will be but a blip in perspective of eternity and we've got a Savior that can resonate with what we're going through because he experienced all things. And that gives us hope.

But we have to, we got to surround ourselves on those days where we can't lift ourselves up, Bruce. We got to surround ourselves with people that have hope, that are hopeful kind of people. Who do you surround yourself with that are hopeful people to make sure that when you're on a rough day, they can help you remind you to have hope for tomorrow?

Bruce Bruinsma: Yeah. One of my friends the other day he called me on Monday and he says I'm going to be at your house at one o'clock on Wednesday. I said, great. Why are you coming? He said, cause I'm bringing lunch. And I'm bringing hope and said, I just want to encourage you. And so one o'clock on Wednesday, he shows up with a couple of sandwiches and a bowl of soup, and he and Judy and I sit around the table and he shared with us some of his perspective and it was encouraging and that encouragement, when he left, I said to Judy, I said, there really is hope, isn't there? Not only because we know what eternity is, but there's hope for tomorrow.

So when we look at what it is that God's calling us to do or the circumstance we have, in my particular case, our son Brent, who's special needs, has been counting on for six, seven months now, making a trip a month from now to Ireland to be able to see the place where the Titanic was built in the museum. That's there. He's for 40 years, he's been a Titanic aficionado. And so we promised him that we would take him there. His biggest concern and he calls us every single day, sometimes twice, and saying is mom going to go with us to Ireland?

And so I put Judy on and say, Judy, what do you think? And she says, absolutely. I'm coming along with you. And so that encouragement gives Brent hope, but it also is part of the hope that is built into Judy to do the exercises and the walking and the things that she needs to do to be strong enough. And it gives me hope that our family will be able to make that very unusual trip together. So there's a very practical application of that, knowing that god has a plan for us and for our family. And I firmly believe that it's to take that trip. Now that's a pretty practical thing. That's not a big deal.

On the other hand, it's a huge deal in our family. And so we have hope for tomorrow that we will be able to take that trip to Ireland and that Judy will be well enough to to be able to do that. But she plays a role in the creation of that because if she doesn't do her exercises, if she doesn't get strong enough, then she's not going to be able to go. And that's the whoop and the wharf of the daily application of thinking about hope for tomorrow, but walking with faith today.

Jim Brangenberg: Bruce, I think the other thing that causes our friends here that are part of the Retirement Reformation to lose hope is a lack of purpose. And that's where the Retirement Reformation really comes in. You've got a host of things. material to help build purpose into our retirement years. Why don't you talk about how the Retirement Reformation can help each of us stay focused on the significance and the purposefulness of tomorrow while still living its life to its fullest potential today and all of it containing hope.

Bruce Bruinsma: God's plan for our life is based upon a couple of things. Number one, the capacity and capabilities that he builds into us in our DNA, the lessons that we have learned and that he has taught us through all of our experiences in life. And then the realization that the plan that he has for us to be able to make a difference.

And when we say being able to make a difference, that has a couple of pieces to it. Number one, the impact on someone else, but also the continue to build up of faith and hope in ourselves and that we in fact can carry out the plan that God has for us. And when we do that, what we know is that will be the pathway to the everlasting hope that we'll have when when we pass away, when we die. And when we are called to heaven

Jim Brangenberg: . Bruce, on a conversation of hope for tomorrow, I think we have to address this last question as we close out today. Have you ever had a day where you weren't sure whether you had hope for tomorrow? What do you do? What do you do? What do you do to pick yourself up to remember that you do have hope even when you don't feel like you have hope?

Bruce Bruinsma: A few weeks ago when Judy was on the ventilator and I really thought we had, I had lost her and I cried. In the midst of that crying, God's Holy Spirit prompted me to say, why are you crying and what can you learn? And my answer was, I'm crying because I'm experiencing potential loss. What I can learn is that there is always hope for tomorrow. And so it's in those moments of real pain, fear, anxiety, that in fact, when we are prompted that we can realize that, yeah, it's perhaps even healthy to be able to express those emotions.

But to know that we have a bottom line. And it occurred to me, I said, I cannot imagine people going through these kinds of experiences without hope and without that eternal hope, because that's what allows us to do that. And then to be able to learn from those experiences that make us one step closer to what Jesus calls us to be.

Jim Brangenberg: I appreciate that Bruce, thanks for sharing that. You've been listening to iRetire4Him, the voice and resource of the Retirement Reformation with your host Jim Brangenberg and the Retirement Reformation's very own founder, Bruce Bruinsma. You've heard from his heart today. We all have a hope for tomorrow. Bruce and I, we're Christ followers, journeying from retirement to reformation so we can ultimately say when the day comes to an end, iRetire4Him!