Swimming

 

I met Larry Smith in 1968 when we both lived in Riley Hall in college.  Larry worked at American National Bank on the evening shift proofing checks.  As an employee, he was allowed to use the bank property on Chickamauga Lake.  Swimming at the lake became a staple for our dorm.  I tried to be the first one into the water every time we arrived in Larry’s 1965 Chevelle.  But once, when I dove in, I didn’t realize that the Army Corps of Engineers had lowered the lake by three feet in order to kill off mosquito larvae.  I went in head-first with arms outstretched and hit the rocky bottom.  I came up with lacerations on my chest and puncture wounds in my right arm.  It took three stitches to close up a gash near my elbow.  But I was fortunate.  I could have hit my head and done serious damage.  Joni Eareckson Tada became a paraplegic in just such a diving accident.  Often, I thank the dear Lord for watching over me in my recklessness.  Paul said in Romans 8:28, “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.”  God was good to me, but actually, God was good to Joni too because God has a plan for each of us.  Hey, let’s follow God’s plan.

Wedding

 

Yesterday afternoon, we were privileged to attend the wedding of Kathy’s great-niece, Caroline Layton to Henry Tardy.  Dr. Wayne Layton (the bride’s father) officiated the ceremony.  As Brother Wayne spoke from Ephesians chapter 5 regarding the responsibilities of a husband and a wife, Caroline and Henry smiled at one another and held hands.  And sitting on the fourth row of the chapel, my wife of 53 years smiled at me, and I smiled right back.  And all four of us were reminded of Christ’s love for His bride, the church.  Paul said in Ephesians 5:32, “This is a great mystery: but I speak concerning Christ and the church.”  Hey, Jesus Christ loved us so much that He gave his life for us!  That’s serious love!  I believe that marriage instituted in the Garden of Eden by the Lord about 6,000 years ago was designed to be a beautiful visual picture of the love of Jesus for us, His followers.  But humankind had to wait 4,000 years before Jesus came to earth to show us His love!  Caroline and Henry were in love Saturday.  And Kathy and I are still in love after 53 years.  And Jesus Christ still loves you 2,000 years later.  Yes, He does!

!969 Rambler American

 

For years I drove a 1969 Rambler American.  It was silver and black, and back in the day, it was a sharp little car.  But, just like me, it began to show its age.  Among other things, the gas gauge quit working.  I kept a little notebook in the glove box listing mileage and fuel economy, so I usually knew about when I would run out of gas.  I usually got gas before I ran out.  Usually.  But I kept a gallon jug of gasoline in the trunk just in case.  If I were going up a hill when the car sputtered, I would pull over as the engine died, wait for traffic to clear, roll back downhill and make a backwards coasting U-turn to the other side of the road so that my one gallon of gas would go directly into the fuel line.  My plan worked, but it wasn’t very safe.  Somehow it seemed like a good plan … at the time.  Hey, sometimes in our life, we seem to run out of gas.  We may get discouraged, we may have marriage problems, we may be in financial hardships, we may have problems with the kids - we just don’t seem to have the answers that we need.  We are on empty.  But the real problem is that we have forgotten about God and left Him out of our lives.  But God doesn’t beat us up; He stands ready to meet our needs.  That is if we call upon Him.  God said in Jeremiah 33:3, “Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and shew thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not.”  Hey, if we call upon God, He will refill our spiritual tank.  He will set us back on the road to our eternal home.  And that’s a good feeling.