28 things I wish I knew before turning 28

On Saturday September 7th I turned 28 years old.

It is one of those amazing moments where you realize you have done so much, and yet so little. That you have accomplished many goals, and have yet to accomplish many more. That you have lived a lot of life, and yet barely any.

I see these lists all over the Internet, so I figured I’d give my hand at it.

What did I miss? What do you wish you learned earlier? What from this list stands out to you?

The 28 Things

1. Putting God first empowers and energizes you to properly prioritize everything else. I have found, without exception, the times in life where I am putting God first I in turn love my family better, love my job better, and love the community around me better.

2. Prayer is not a moment in the morning, before bed, and before meals. Prayer is a constant decision to place God in front of mind, and myself at his mercy.

3. Pray as a family. There are few things I enjoy more than listening to Olga read the Bible and pray with the boys. And there are few joys in life as great as praying with and over my own family with my family. They know my most sincere, internal heart posture for them. They hear what I am asking the God of the universe to do on their behalf.

4. Scripture is a lot more enjoyable to read when you perceive it not as a rule book to be memorized but a story you are placing yourself into. You should memorize Scripture, and there are some important rules. But each of us is living out a story, and being adopted into the biblical story infuses your life with purpose, meaning, and wisdom. It is life-giving.

5. Find a good Church. I have been blessed to be surrounded by great Churches. But I have experienced many who have not and the pain they feel because of it is extreme. The amount of grace found by living alongside faithful believers is astounding and found nowhere else on earth. The Church truly is a gift from God.

6. Nothing pays off like having a good spouse. There is a lot of data out there that having a good spouse is linked to better health, better finances, and more happiness. I know I am forever grateful for the opportunity to live alongside Olga in this adventure called life.

7. Kids are worth every sacrifice. So much of our culture refuses to have kids because of the financial, social, and personal cost associated with having kids. There are certain activities that we are not able to do as much, but those activities have been replaced with the joys of parenting two boys that the world absolutely needed. They are going to make the world better by them being here. They already have!

8. When considering how to spend your time, be willing to say “no” often and “yes” infrequently. By saying yes to one thing, you are essentially saying no to every other possibility. Time is limited. Don’t spend it on things that don’t matter to the core of who you are.

9. Eat good food. Eating whole organic foods is underrated. I know that it costs more now, but it will save you time and money later. I am in the best shape of my life and it is in no small part to the diet my wife and I choose to adhere to.

10. Workout often. It doesn’t have to be everyday, but often is good. Even if “working out” is just a walk around the block. There are so many benefits to moving your body, not the least of these being your mood. It is a low cost way to just be a little bit happier.

11. Health is more important than money. When you are sick, no one chooses to keep their money instead of seeking to make themselves well. Work hard to keep yourself in good health. A little maintenance daily is easier than trying to fix what is already broken.

12. Make yourself uncomfortable as often as you can. It is only through discomfort that we are able to grow. If we desire to become better, to learn new things, to be able to accomplish more things, then it comes through an imbalance of inputs. It’s just like building muscle. It only happens wen you place a load on the muscle.

13. Money doesn’t make you happy. A reduction in the things that you desire does. If you want nothing, money will be of no use other than to meet the needs for the very basics of life. You need much less money than people say you do.

14. Invest your money early. As soon as the boys were born, we began putting money into an investment portfolio. Compounding growth is insane, and the earlier you begin this compounding growth the better.

15. Earning money is better than saving money. You can only save so much of your money. But the ability to earn money, in theory, is infinite. Spend time learning how to keep your money but also learn how you can earn more.

16. Be generous even when it hurts. I cannot tell you how many times Olga and I have made the decision to give when we could not afford to do so, and yet we were taken care of.

17. Friendships come and go. Sometimes friends disappear. The relationship changes and it is not something that you can keep up. Sometimes you make new friends. Be present in every relationship, enjoy it for what it is right there in that moment. Be thankful for the moment.

18. Befriend all kinds of people. Most people will tell you to befriend those in places you want to go, and that is good wisdom. But I also think, when you are stable in Christ, you can be a light to friends who are not in the same position you are in.

19. Networking really does matter. It is not your knowledge or degree or even your past experiences that best open doors for opportunities. It is relationships.

20. It is never too late to reinvent who you are. The beautiful truth of being reborn in Christ is that you are given a new life that is hidden in Christ. Every day is a chance to change who you are perceived as being, the story that you tell yourself about who you are. Choose a new way.

21. Travel as much as you can. No one can replicate the unique experiences that you have, the stories that you can produce by living well. People can go to the same place as you, and though they see the same scenery, the story is wholly different. Plus, you get to mingle in other cultures and their stories. There is nothing quite like living among different people.

22. Be a lifelong learner. There are always things to know, to grow into. Taking a posture of learning automatically places you in a position of humility.

23. In all things, be thankful.

24. Read a lot.

25. Write as much as you can.

26. Being kind is free. This includes being kind to yourself!

27. Whether you have today, tomorrow, another week, month, or year: be present. Kill your daydreaming. Get off social media. Your quality of life will dramatically improve, and the people around you will benefit as well.

28. Don’t take everything so seriously. Prioritize fun. Celebrate the people around you.

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