“Our chaotic world sometimes moves us to yearn for life as it used to be.”

A thought by George Barna (2011-05-15) in his book, Futurecast: What Today's Trends Mean for Tomorrow's World (Kindle Locations 485-486). Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.. Kindle Edition.

Do you feel that way? I can’t say I do. I like living in this time in history. I am 64 years of age so I have seen other times that were chaotic.

For instance I lived in the 60’s. In no way do I want to go back to those days of major unrest. I lived in Michigan during the Detroit riots and I lived in Ohio when those students were killed at Kent State. My draft lottery number was 249 so I didn’t have to go to Vietnam but I remember those horrible days.

Margaret and I went and saw Woody Allen’s movie, Midnight in Paris, a couple of weeks back. In it Owen Wilson’s character was an author who lived with the despair of not living in the 20’s in Paris. He knew life would have been so much more fulfilling if he could have lived in Paris in the 20’s. Woody Allen did an entertaining job of showing the need to appreciate the time you live in rather than pining for the days of old.

Now for me today is my day of opportunity and it is the time and place I have been created to live, right now. Yes I am retired and I sometimes miss being a pastor in Newport News, Virginia or Austin,Texas or Las Vegas, Nevada. I was a church planter and I loved my life then but I also love my life now and I don’t want to go back.

I have learned that life is to be lived in the now not in the past but also with an eye on the future.

What do you think?

Comments

“There’s a big difference between building a castle and building a kingdom.”

A thought by Bob Goff from his book, Everybody, Always: Becoming Love in a World Full of Setbacks and Difficult People ( p. 41). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition. (Click on the book title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.) Have you ever built a sand castle or maybe a Lego castle? Have you? Bob says, “We actually build castles all the time, out of our jobs and our families and the things we’ve purchased. Sometimes we even make them out of each other. Some of these castles are impressive too. Lots of people come to admire what we’ve built over the course of our lives and tell us what great castles we have. But Jesus told His friends we weren’t supposed to spend our lives building castles. He said He wanted us to build a kingdom, and there’s a big difference between building a castle and building a kingdom.” Bob goes on, “You see, castles have moats to keep creepy people out, but kingdoms have bridges to let everyone in. Castles have dungeons for people who ha...

“God does big things with small deeds.”

A thought by Max Lucado (2011-05-02) from his book, Cure for the Common Life (p. 115). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition. (Click on the title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.) I don’t know how you feel about what you are doing and how it can make a difference. You may feel that it is so small and not even worth the effort. Max says, “Begin. Just begin! What seems small to you might be huge to someone else. Just ask Bohn Fawkes. During World War II, he piloted a B-17. On one mission he sustained flak from Nazi antiaircraft guns. Even though his gas tanks were hit, the plane did not explode, and Fawkes was able to land the plane. “On the morning following the raid, Fawkes asked his crew chief for the German shell. He wanted to keep a souvenir of his incredible good fortune. The crew chief explained that not just one but eleven shells had been found in the gas tanks, none of which had exploded. “Technicians opened the missiles and found them void of explosive cha...

“Sometimes we think we’re stuck simply because things are hard.”

A thought by Matt Perman, from his book, How to Get Unstuck (p. 52). Zondervan. Kindle Edition. (Click on the book title to go to Amazon.com to buy the That is a possible trap for many, isn’t it? Matt says, “But if you’re continuing to make progress and aren’t experiencing huge snags, you’re not stuck. Rather, you’re in a dip. “A dip is a temporary hard slog that you will get through if you keep pushing and don’t give up. And pushing through the hard slog is actually the fastest route to the destination. In these cases, you will be especially tempted to bail. Be discerning and able to identify that you’re in a legitimate dip and you’re not a failure.” Matt says another trap to be careful of, “Some people are stuck and don’t know it.” He goes on, “Everything can be going your way, going smoothly, and going quickly. Everything feels and seems wonderful. Yet... you are still headed toward a dead end, a form of getting stuck, if you are leaving God out of t...

Just Continue That Thought...

Search This Blog