Yesterday I was driving home from the keys. It was my second day of driving, and I was exhausted. As I was driving along, I decided to call an old friend who lived in the area. He was grouchy as a hibernating bear that had been awakened telling me he was old and hurt all over and blah blah blah. Ugh . . . I got off the phone in a couple of minutes, deciding I would rather stare ahead than listen to his old age woes.
Then I thought of another friend who lived in the area. Usually when I call him and inquire as to how he is feeling he responds, “Good -Good”, but this time he launched into his septic tank failing, his kids being bullied at school, his foster child being taken in by her grandmother into squalid circumstance including bedbugs. Then he topped it off by telling me that he has always wanted to receive a million-dollar commission and he was closing a big deal, but he had to reduce his commission by $50,000. Poor baby!
On my trip home I encountered horrendous traffic in Miami and then when the turnpike ended, and I got on I-75 and went about 8 miles, suddenly the traffic was stopped in all three lanes. I was 9.8 miles from the exit, and it took over 6 hours to finally reach it and get off. I had been driving for nearly 11 hours and my wife had driven four. It began to get dark and when it does, I’m blind. We could not change drivers because my wife could not get out of the car easily and short-tempered people were driving aggressively so I had to use taillights of the vehicles in front of me to navigate. I was pulling a trailer loaded with a golf cart and assorted other items on it and the back end of my truck was loaded down with a one-ton coral bench.
When we got home my wife literally wept while saying grace and she quickly ended it. I asked her why she was crying and wondered if I had said something stupid, but she said with a shaky voice that she was just so thankful that we got home alive. Hmmm . . . The thought of not getting home alive had not occurred to me.
I started thinking this morning of all the good times we had while in the keys, the coolers of fish, shrimp, and lobsters I brought home. I contemplated having fun with all my friends and neighbors that I’d seen and enjoying being on the beautiful blue ocean and going to the Bahamas for a day to catch big wahoo. I thought of all the laughs my wife and I had as we made the long drive and all the things which we talked about on that trip.
I for one do not want to focus on the bad times and things in this life that are negative. Sure, I have health issues, but I have lived many-many days pain free. I used to have 20-15 vision and could see like an eagle. Comparatively speaking I haven’t had macular degeneration but a small portion of my entire life, and I can still see in the daylight. Yes, our trip was exhausting, and I’m still tired this morning, but I made it home safe and sound and even got a great night’s sleep last night, something that is rare for me.
My buddies should take this post and save it to a folder. Can you imagine being bummed out because you only got $950,000 instead of a million-dollar commission (and remember that is only one sale, and he has many other smaller sales). He told me his wife got baptized last week, that alone is cause for a week-long celebration. His kids are happy and healthy. Geez . . . The same is true of my other friend he has the blessing of working with his son every day and has a thriving business. Yes, he is getting older, but what is the alternative?
Our world is chock full of people who are homeless, hopelessly addicted, hungry, penniless, and who live lives in fear and misery. In Mexico cartels kill people and leave their beheaded corpses to rot in the street. I read where the average lifespan of a soldier on the front line in the Ukraine war is four hours. Some of our urban cities it is dangerous to walk down the streets, but I imagine most who are reading this live in safer areas.
I once read a bumper sticker that said, “Don’t talk about the farmer with your mouthfull”. I suppose some of us should abide by a saying, “Don’t curse your bad luck when you have been undeservingly blessed“. Listen to the voice of God and know that this life is going to be full of trouble due to being cursed for sin. But blessings do abound to those who love and follow the Lord, even in times of darkness. Count your many blessings – Name them on by one my friends.
Jeremiah 42:6
Whether it is pleasant or unpleasant, we will listen to the voice of the Lord our God to whom we are sending you, so that it may go well with us when we listen to the voice of the Lord our God.”
Have a great weekend and go to church this Sunday!