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Sometimes when I’m talking to teens, I draw an analogy between the bonding capacity of the body and adhesive tape. Adhesive tape is not made for repetitive use. The strongest bond adhesive tape is capable of making is formed with the first surface to which it is applied. You can remove the tape and reapply it to other surfaces several times, and it will still adhere. However, with every application, some of the adhesiveness has been compromised. Finally, if you continue the practice long enough, there will not be enough adhesiveness left to make the tape stick to any surface. God intended that the bond between mates be the closest and strongest one they are capable of forming.
Dr. Richard Dobbins in Homemade, Nov., 1987
Let Go of That Balloon! (07.08.05--Joy Every Day--Ecclesiastes 11:1-6)
Carpe diem! Engraved in the keystone of the old fellowship hall I passed every day on my way to the office, I had glanced at it countless times. But on this particular day, with my youngest daughter in the car, her question prompted me to cast a second look. What does “Carp Dime” mean dad?” “That’s carp-ae dee-um.” I said. “It’s Latin for seize the day!” She looked at me quizzically for the rest of the answer. “Seize the day means to, well, hold on to it and wring every ounce of opportunity that you can out of it. Don’t let it go until you’ve made the best of every situation.” She seemed satisfied with the answer and continued watching the traffic. I, on the other hand, was left with a slight feeling of dissatisfaction. “Every opportunity? The best of every situation?” I may know the meaning but I was suddenly struck with the uneasy feeling that I didn’t understand the application.
“Seize the day!” Somehow it seems to me that this is probably what went through the mind of our Savior each morning as he awoke to another day of ministry on this earth. Time was short and the day was rapidly advancing when the work he could do here would be brought to end. “Carpe Diem!” What work needed to be accomplished must be done now. And, as importantly, what joy there was available in that “deum,” that day must, with an embrace, be brought into the heart, and, most importantly, shared with everyone in that day. The day was no time for slacking, whether that be in work or pleasure.
I remember reading about a conference at a Presbyterian church where people were given helium filled balloons and told to release them at some point in the service when they felt like expressing the joy in their hearts. Since they were Presbyterians, they felt that they weren’t free to say “Hallelujah, Praise the Lord.” All through the service some balloons ascended, but when it was over 1/3 of the balloons were unreleased. The majority of the parishioners were simply afraid to let their balloons go.
The Bible tells us to “Cast your bread upon the waters, for after many days you will find it again.” When we work hard it is easy to see that our labors result in something concrete, a job accomplished, something improved or made better. Why is it that we don’t treat the joy in our day the same way. Casting it upon the waters of this life so that others can benefit from our smile, our good joke told well, our willingness to say “Hi!” to a stranger on our way. Today, seize the little joys that God puts into your life and share them with someone else. Let your balloon and “seize the day.”
“Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own” (Matt 6:34)
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Enjoy Them All! (07.04.05--Joy Every Day--Ecclesiastes 11:7-10)
Only a dozen or so years and then, sweet, sweet retirement. Having worked for over 35 years, my time of hope and sweet happiness is now firmly planted on the horizon. In but a decade or so, I could be retired. No more getting up at 4:50 AM or making sure I had good battery in the old Corvair so that I was assured I would get to work the following morning. Now, that is a goal certainly worth working for--retirement. And, why not? When you are looking toward something so much better, what does the today have to offer in comparison?
In a sense, living for retirement is living for tomorrow. But, if tomorrow holds all the joy, what is the secret to being happy today? Is it simply the fact that we have our hope in tomorrow and that is our joy?
If that is true, then I know that I have witnessed over the years at least one if not several anomalies to the principle; my Grandpa Leo, for example. He always seemed happy whenever I saw him. Even when he was sick and close to death I never detected a tone of bitterness or regret in his words. Was this because he had finally attained retirement after working so hard through a depression and a war that now he finally had a chance to enjoy life? I really don’t think so. The one thing about my grandfather that really impressed me as a kid was the way he was always hard at work doing something. Whether it was climbing the old oak tree in his front yard at the age of 80 to trim a broken branch or just planting petunias in one of his beloved flower beds, Grandpa Leo never stopped working. In fact, even though he was retired, you would hardly have noticed. His move from the factory floor to a retirement cottage on a lake at age 65 was seamless.
I believe that his secret for being happy was not that he was retired and didn’t need to get up early and work any more. He still got up early and he never gave up working. The secret to being happy for him was not simply looking forward to fishing every day as the sun came up over the lake, although that was something he treasured. Rather, my grandfather had discovered from early on, from in the depths of the Great Depression, that the secret of enjoying life, having joy every day, wa...
"When we are rightly related to God, life is full of spontaneous, joyful unc...
