Good Morning and welcome. Today is
Friday, October 19, 2018, and I bid you a happy end to the work week for most and best wishes for us all being able to finish strong. If they do a house to house search looking for a true Astros fan, they will not be identifying me as one. Don't get me wrong. I support them. I want to see them win. But, I know my limitations. When my bedtime comes I know I have to leave it there because otherwise, I will be up into the night fretting over this, that, or the other. I do, however, check things out in the wee hours of the morning when I get up. Not just the score. I get a kick out of reading the play-by-play by those who are on my Facebook as they report what's happening on each throw to the plate. They actually root their team on from their smartphones or tablets, but, often they experience the old ABC Sports moniker, 'The thrill of victory and the agony of defeat.' For this year it ended in the agony of defeat, however, it was a tremendous season and a great accomplishment to have a shot at repeating as world champions. As I have mentioned before, we also watch the real-time police show, 'Live PD' when we can. I like to pull up the live Twitter feed and see what other watchers are saying about what they are seeing on the screen. I can tell you without any scientific polling that the police dogs on that show are the most popular stars, hands down. The 'Live PD' nation as it is called, is in love with these dogs. And, they do like to do their own version of play-by-play of all that is happening between the good guys and the bad guys. I read them to the wife and we both get a kick out of them. Yeah. I know. It doesn't take much to entertain old people. Got it, and, thanks for reminding me.
The Flashback Friday segment talks about Social Security retirement benefits. At the time I wrote this, eleven years ago, I was weighing my options on when to start my retirement benefits. Just so you know, I turned 62 in 2008 and I did begin receiving all my retirement distributions. Here's what I wrote about in October of 2007.~ First Boomer Files For Social Security! I read this week about the lady who was born in early January 1946, identified as the very first baby boomer, and she has now officially applied for her social security benefits to begin at age 62. Wow! That means I am now officially in line. If the estimate is close, it means I’m one of the early boomers with only 79,999, 999 in line after this lady. Eighty million folks. They estimate this massive group will add to the social security rolls to the tune of 10,000 people per day! It reminds me of a joke told by Bob Hope one time. He said that with the Chinese producing a billion people they bound to have been doing something other than playing ping pong. Obviously, the post-WWII baby boom means that we as a nation will now be entering into unchartered waters. I could be a smart aleck about it and send notice to each of the 3.3 workers that support one social security recipient and tell them they to need to work harder and longer hours as we boomers come on the scene. The stats indicate back in 1950 there were 16 workers supporting each recipient. The times they are a changing. I think the current estimate is that with the additional strain on the system, it should be solvent until 2043 and then it will go belly up. That concerns me because I will turn 97 that year. Man, there’s always a catch! ~
Ten years into the official triggering of our retirement benefits, I can say unequivocally that we are blessed to receive what we do. Sure. We both worked and paid into the private and public systems, but, we also know that being able to work, and having the jobs we held, was a provision and blessing from God. Our attitude of gratitude should reflect the sentiment expressed in the children's song:
"So, rise and shine, and give God the glory, glory
Rise and shine, and give God the glory, glory
Rise and shine, and give God the glory, glory
Children of the Lord"
What a week! I could give my laundry list of things that happened to us. Things we had to deal with. Challenges we had to face. My list would be impressive. But, I know yours would be also. That's how it goes in the living out of our lives in this fallen world. Our prayer list is crowded as we seek God on behalf of so many in need. He knows. He cares. I leave you with one of my favorite promises from our Creator: Romans 8:35-39 as rendered in the New King James Version (NKJV), "
Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written: 'For Your sake we are killed all day long; We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.' Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord." Lord willing, I will catch back up with you, come next Monday. Until then, may God bless each one.
Amen. ....More later.
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