What a transition!

Good morning and welcome. It is Monday, July 8, 2019, and, for many, they will be returning to the workplace after enjoying a long holiday respite. You know, the holiday, one day of vacation, and Saturday and Sunday off, four days to take a break. As a manager, those kinds of absences always made Monday challenging in getting everyone back on track. We used to laugh about some of the staff needing to be retrained after a long holiday weekend. I suppose I am now in a perpetual extended holiday. It's called retirement. What a transition! On the 4th of July, the wife and I went furniture shopping. We got new stuff after Hurricane Ike wiped most of it out in 2008. The family room needs to be updated. We found what we were looking for. One set we liked was really good quality but a little pricey. The other was liked by the wife, very comfortable, and less expensive. We were trying to make the decision and she offered up this gem, "Well, let's go with the less expensive because think about it, we're not going to be around that much longer." Hello? I will have to tell you that's the first time I've heard that one from her. But, actually, it made sense. What a transition! Then on Saturday afternoon, we attended a birthday party for a dear lady in our Bible study class who turned 90. Her children put on the party and provided a meal and festivities to honor her. Nearly 80 folks were there. I can remember a time when we would have pretty much felt out of place at a birthday for someone reaching 90. Not anymore. What a transition!

The wife knows me pretty well. We often use the moniker on each other, "I know you just like a book." I assume that means one that has been read many times, cover to cover. At any rate, last Sunday morning, I had been up very early putting the final touches on the Bible lesson I was preparing to teach. Our middle son was getting ready to leave for his weekend job. He asked his mom, "What's up with dad walking around in a circle?" She responded, "Don't worry, he's still thinking about his lesson." That, of course, is exactly what I was doing. I am so very thankful to God that I still get a sense of expectation to the point of being unsettled when trying to know what I will be presenting from His Word. After she said that, I thought about the responsibility and the privilege that is mine in God gifting me to teach His Holy Word. Humbling. And, very heavy, in terms of the responsibility to rightly divide the truths, He gave to us. While some think teaching the Bible is really easy for me, I can only tell you, it is very intimidating. I hope I never get over that feeling of needing His help to do the best I can. I suppose, The Wife, after 54.5 years, knows pretty much how I roll.

I heard an explanation for how the mainstream media gets it so wrong so often. A commentator said they write their scripts before the speech or event happens and they stick with that script even though what they are actually seeing and showing on the screen is the total opposite of what the script says. This is exactly what happened with President Trump's salute to America last week. Their pre-event analysis and their script of the actual event said it was nothing more than a campaign ploy, a tribute to the President, and nothing about America and the birthday of the Republic. If you saw the event you know it was totally different than what they described. He did not focus any on himself. It was all about America, how God has blessed us, the heroes of every color and creed, and the great achievements brought to the world by our great country. He gave a history lesson to our entire nation. It was all about America. About our exceptionalism. And, I for one, felt a surge of pride and thankfulness for the nation God has blessed us to live in. That's right! Warts and all. Issues and troubles. Wrongs that still need to be made right. We are a work in progress, but, we are America! May God continue to bless this great land. Amen. ....More later.