"You Can Go Home Again (It's Just Not The Same)" ~ Forbes Magazine Article

Good morning and welcome. It is Wednesday, April 10, 2019, and, I will probably pull the trigger on mailing my tax information today. Yesterday, after I dropped Mr. Bentley off at the vet, since it was not that far away, I returned to the scene of my most recent spate of gainful employment, the Company where I worked for 12 years. My dear brother in Christ and owner of the Company was not there but I did get to see many of the people I had worked with for those many years. It was business as usual as they were engulfed with jobs, deadlines, and trying to juggle all their resources to get the projects done. They eliminated my desk and made it into a storage area. They said they didn't want anyone new coming there. I actually think maybe they did that hoping I would never come back. That's a joke. You know. Like the old days when a kid got to a certain age, the parents would break their dinner plate and send them on their way. I did enjoy my drive up to the place where I spent so much time. It is off the beaten path, a great place to have a small manufacturing concern. My take, the more things change it is the more they stay the same. Thanks be to God for His provision in allowing me to work there for a 12-year run. Thanks be to God for allowing me to retire-retire so I could move on to the next phase of the life He has given to me. Amen.

I heard a fellow on American Family Radio talking about a recent H and R Block survey of Americans indicating how busy they are. According to these findings, Americans, on average have approximately 4.5 hours of free time left over. In a day? No. That was in a week. I have long believed that our adversary, Satan himself, has committed himself to getting everyone tied in knots trying to fulfill everything one can imagine. No time for God. No time for family. The schedule rules the day. When asked what they would love to do if they had an opportunity for leisure, the polling indicated folks would love to be able to go to Disney World, perhaps an international vacation spot, and a host of other amusement types of entertainment. The commentator ended his report by saying that would likely be only a pipe dream with only 4.5 hours to work with. I've talked before about how a sermon back in the early 1980s got my attention regarding the use of my time. It had to do with commitment to the things that matter for time and eternity. He ended his sermon with these questions, "If not you, who? If not now, when?" God used that wake-up call to help me see that I needed to make some changes in my life in order to prioritize spiritual matters. Since that time, I've slipped and slid here and there, but, like the prodigal, God typically reminds me that I need to come to my senses and put Him first. That, my friend, is the only way to live in our busy world. Amen.

Mr. Bentley made it through his medical ordeal and is now at home recovering. I had not realized he would have to wear one of those little plastic cones but he has one. It is necessary to keep him from clawing at his repaired eye. Since he has claimed some portion of my time and effort each day, I no doubt will keep you posted on his progress. He is still very angry. He doesn't like the cone on his neck. At the moment, he doesn't like us. But, he will get better. At least, that's what they tell us. Speaking of retirement, I saw the photo above being passed around Facebook. One caption talked about how they had worked all their life so they could travel when they retired. Another one simply said, "An expensive nap." That photo of those retirees in Venice, Italy, well, it spoke to me. I suppose I have always thought about traveling the world when I retired. There's certainly nothing wrong with that. However, thus far, those types of adventures have not come up on our radar screen. I'm certainly not unhappy with the opportunities God has given me to serve and to use the time I now have. In the same breath, I would like to think we would make some trips before we end up mostly sleeping. It is kind of funny, or, I think it is, especially for us older folks. Okay. Enjoy the rest of your day and may God add His blessings to it. Amen. .....More later.