Honey

 

Thanksgiving was a total success!  A hearty “thank you” to my dear wife, who put on a fabulous meal.  And thank you to my dear daughter, Beth, for all of her hard work decorating, cleaning, and getting all of the dishes out of the oven in a timely fashion.  I am blessed, indeed!  But minutes after the big meal was over and the desserts were finished, I was reminiscing.  I used to go out on Thanksgiving afternoon to get that big, fat newspaper with all of the Black Friday ads for my wife and daughters to plan their Black Friday shopping in the wee hours of Friday morning.  But with the advent of the internet, Black Friday now lasts a month!  So, Friday morning, Cardiac rehab was closed.  I took my wife to dialysis and went back to bed.  Unusual for me.  But before I did, I had to get two pieces of toast and hot chocolate (Keurig style) so that my stomach wouldn’t be growling and keep me awake.  I like the fresh-baked bread at Walmart, so I toasted two slices, buttered them, and drizzled honey all over them.  After my quick breakfast, I checked my e-mail and facebook one last time before my nap.  But something was sticky on the computer.  It had to be from that honey toast … and it was!  I had honey on the side of my hand, which I had picked up from a drip on my pants, which came from a drip on my beard, which came from a hole in the bread that leaked when I took a bite.  A long trip for one drop of honey!  I was reminded of Psalm 133, which only has three verses: “Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity! It is like the precious ointment upon the head, that ran down upon the beard, even Aaron's beard: that went down to the skirts of his garments; As the dew of Hermon, and as the dew that descended upon the mountains of Zion: for there the LORD commanded the blessing, even life for evermore.”  Unlike my honey, Aaron’s precious ointment was a welcomed drip, from his head, to his beard, and down to his garments.  And the dear Lord smiles upon the unity in His church.  Hey, is there unity of purpose in your church?  Does everyone follow the careful leadership of your pastor?  Like a sweet-smelling ointment, God values unity.  Yes, He does.

Trade-offs

 

Everything in life is a trade-off.  I have a little Scion X-B that gets great gas mileage.  But the Scion can’t tow my trailer like my eight-cylinder pickup truck can.  But while the truck can tow the trailer better, the gas mileage is much worse than the Scion.  A trade-off.  I stretched out aluminum foil (Reynold’s Wrap) on my grill and grilled green beans for lunch the other day.  They were delicious and very healthful … but I wasn’t quite as satisfied like I am after gravy and biscuits.  But my cholesterol is much lower eating green beans.  Another trade-off.  And life is a trade-off too.  Jesus said in Matthew 6:24, “No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.”  This is the ultimate trade-off: God or the world.  You can spend your life serving God, or you can spend your life serving self and the world system (mammon).  And as you claw your way up the corporate ladder, how do the little people feel as you step over them to reach your goals?  Think about it: when you come to the end of your life, which will have satisfied you?  God or money?

Sneakers

 

My fifteen-year-old grandson loves shoes.  But Bennett likes to shop at thrift stores to get shoes at a bargain price.  So, for his birthday, I gave him $25 and a trip to the Unclaimed Baggage store in Scottsboro, Alabama.  It is a huge, upscale second-hand store.  Google it, or better yet, go there sometime.  And Fifty Taters restaurant in Scottsboro is a good stopover too.  Bennett found so many shoes that he had to call his mother to get permission to spend over his limit.  He found expensive shoes at a nickel on the dollar.  He found me some sneakers too.  He assured me that they were worth $150 … for $15.99!  They are high-top basketball shoes that make me feel young again.  Well, sort of.  This morning, at Cardiac Rehab, I heard them squeak on the vinyl floor, and I was taken back to my seventh-grade gym class.  My brother had Jack Purcell sneakers and I had Converse high-tops that squeaked when I pivoted.  I loved those shoes!  But eventually, they wore out and I had to throw them away.  And these new shoes that I bought will wear out too.  The writer of the book of Hebrews said in Hebrews 1:10-12, “And, Thou, Lord, in the beginning hast laid the foundation of the earth; and the heavens are the works of thine hands: They shall perish; but thou remainest; and they all shall wax old as doth a garment; And as a vesture shalt thou fold them up, and they shall be changed: but thou art the same, and thy years shall not fail.”  Everything wears out.  Everything, that is, except for God.  Hey, I’m glad that I can put my faith in the Creator of the Universe!  The Good Lord never fails!