Rejoice!

There’s an old country proverb that says, “Old age ain’t for sissies” and I fear there’s a lot of truth in it. I don’t know where one draws the line as to “old age”. As children our parents were old at thirty and grand-parents ancient at fifty. Personally, now that I’ve past both mile-markers, I do my best to keep from stepping over that “old age” line, simply because I don’t want to feel old. There’s a lot of merit in the “baby-boomer” proverb, “If I’d known I was going to live this long, I’d have taken better care of myself”. Yeh, that’s a reality looking back on life. Oh well, nothing to do but press forward with a positive attitude, work at living healthier and finding doctors to assist you in fixing whatever’s fixable. Eventually everything’s going to go south no matter how hard we try, but in the meantime I’m going to do my best to keep that “line” where I can see it for as long as possible. That brings me to my next fix. I’ll be having surgery on my left eye Wednesday morning. Some, something or other, is growing inside, distorting my vision that’s got to be removed before it causes more damage. It’s an out-patient thing with very little chance of anything going hay-wire. My right eye has the same thing going for it, but not near as bad. Ah, one step at a time.
The nearsighted preacher glanced at the note given to him by an usher. The note read: “Bill Smith having gone to sea, his wife desires the prayers of the congregation for his safety.” Failing to not the punctuation, the preacher announced, “Bill Smith, having gone to see his wife, desires the prayers of the congregation for his safety.”
A man went to his doctor complaining of neck pains, headaches and dizzy spells. “I’m afraid”, said the doctor “you only have six months to live.” The man decided to spend his last days enjoying himself. He quit his job, took all his money out of the bank, bought a new sports car, a new cashmere coat and ten new shirts. The tailor measured him as a size 16. “Just a minute”, the man protested “I’ve always worn a size 14 and that’s what I want!” “Well, alright, if you insist,” the tailor replied. “However, wearing a size 14 could cause neck pains, headaches and dizzy spells.”
[Philippians 4: 4-7] “Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!” I’m kind of slow when it comes to learning and applying. I’m one of those people who learn by experience. Show me and let me do it once, and I’ve got it. Book learning is not my cup of tea. I need to approach subjects from all angles to get a total perspective and understanding of it before I can comfortably reject it from, or apply it to, my life. The word of God is no different. That’s why I read every day, listen to good preaching and try my best to live as God intended me to live. I didn’t always do that in my life, but the strength and hope I find in God’s Word has changed my life. One commentary says this about verses 4-7. “If one is rejoicing, by definition, one cannot be despairing. Paul is not calling for people to rejoice because of the situation. Rather, it is the Lord, who is the source and cause of rejoicing. Faith in the Lord makes joyfulness both realistic and possible. To worry is to display a lack of confidence in God’s care and in God’s control over the situation.” This world is not my home. Everything I touch and see is slated for destruction. Why worry about any of it? There is no joy, only a little fun, in material things that will not last. Joy is in the Lord, the one who will rescue me from this sinful life. The peace of God will bring about my understanding of life.