Recently, my granddaughter Britney was married to Gage, a young man she met when visiting Fort Scott last year.  Britney is from the Las Vegas area but has been finishing up her paramedic credentials in Utah.  The wedding was held at my son and his wife’s ranch.  Britney had three flower girls and Gage had three ring bearer attendants, each gender with two two-year-olds and one four-year-old. You get where I’m going.

The guests were to sit on stained boards that rested atop hay bales, bales that would be delivered the morning of the wedding.  For spacing purposes, the boards were placed on the ground.  To the rug-rats, these boards were perfect gymnastics balance beans for jumping over.  Or on.  Or around.

We all watched, astonished, as they giggled, chased each other down the aisle, attempted to vault over the wooden boards and tackled each other.  Things weren’t much better for the “let’s try that again” attempt…you know, after each parent—most in the bridal party– took their child aside and bribed them with everything but a live pony.

We expected the worst.  Preparations for this wedding had taken months. Both sets of parents and family members had worked to make everything perfect, and Britney’s mother had spent most of September in Fort Scott, away from her family, to work with Gage’s parents on the smallest of details.  And now, six little ones were going to cause havoc.

On the wedding day, these kiddies, now dressed alike with hair slicked or curled, shocked us all when they walked slowly down the aisle in single file, taking their “jobs” seriously.  Flower petals were methodically dropped to the ground, and this time, the chief ring bearer actually handed off the case with the wedding rings in it instead of practicing his quarterback pass with it. No one escaped and ran towards the pond, and they even sat quietly with their assigned adult during the ceremony.  Surely they were A.I. imposters, switched out for some well-behaved youngsters.

Both the wedding and the reception were lovely, months of planning paying off.  The Bible uses a metaphor of a wedding in which our time of “planning” for it also will pay off.  In Ephesians 5, we read that Jesus Christ has sacrificially chosen the church to be his bride, and just as in Bible times there was a betrothal period in which the bride and groom were separated until the wedding, so it is with us and Christ.  We faithfully wait with great anticipation for his return when we will be united with him.  Sometimes we act foolishly, immaturely, selfishly, childishly.  Other times, we face the importance of what we are doing and take our future wedding seriously.

The “details” of our waiting makes a difference.  Should we fail to take our decision to allow Christ in our lives with the seriousness it deserves and continue to act in whatever way we choose, there will be no wedding.  We must ask ourselves what matters most and behave accordingly because at that point, not even a pony will be enough.

Keys to the Kingdom By Carolyn Tucker

The Original Sunscreen

I have several vintage commercials from my teenage years still floating around in my head: “I’d walk a mile for a Camel.“ Wendy’s: “Where’s the beef?” Virginia Slims: “You’ve come a long way, Baby!” “How about a nice Hawaiian Punch?” And one of my favorites was the Coppertone suntan commercial with the dog tugging on the little girl’s  swimsuit bottom. The selling point was to show what a great tan she had in comparison to her pale bare derriere. Times have certainly changed over the years; now there’s more focus on sunscreen rather than suntan lotion.

In the Old Testament, the Israelites wandered in the desert wilderness for 40 years. That’s a long time to be in the sun. “The Lord went ahead of them. He guided them during the day with a pillar of cloud…” (Exodus 13:21 NLT). The desert had no roads, tracks, or signs. And the Israelites had no maps, landmarks, or guides. But God’s cloud went before them to lead the way at just the right pace and stopped to rest at just the right place. God continues to know the future and will always guide us safely through its trackless ways.

For 40 years, the pillar of cloud was much more than a GPS for Jews. God loved them,  had mercy on them, and provided His own unique brand of sunscreen. “He spread a cloud for a covering…” (Psalm 105:39 MEV). This cloud sheltered them from the blazing sun and extreme heat. The Bible contains the historical record of the first supernatural sunscreen. “God’s your Guardian, right at your side to protect you — shielding you from sunstroke, sheltering you from moonstroke” (Psalm 121:5-6 MSG). Without God’s miraculous intervention, wandering around in the desert sun would have turned all of the nearly 3 million Israelites into fried strips of bacon.

Paul wrote to the Church at Corinth, “My dear fellow believers, you need to understand that all of our Jewish ancestors who walked through a wilderness long ago were under the glory cloud…” (1 Corinthians 10:1 TPT). The Israelites witnessed a variety of constant-standing miracles. After 40 years, their clothes didn’t wear out and neither did their sandals. Even when they complained about pitching their tents, whined and disobeyed for 40 years, the cloud didn’t depart but continued to guide and protect them. God was with the Israelites every day and every night, and He continues to be with all believers today. Paul said, “Therefore, I will all the more gladly glory in my weaknesses and infirmities, that the strength and power of Christ (the Messiah) may rest (yes, may pitch a tent over and dwell) upon me!” (2 Corinthians 12:9 AMP).

It was God, not Moses, who actually brought the Israelites out of Egypt. “When Pharaoh finally let the people go, God did not lead them along the main road that runs through Philistine territory…” (Exodus 13:17 NLT). The day the mobile Tabernacle was pitched,  the pillar of cloud covered it. But from evening until morning the cloud looked like a pillar of fire. This was the usual supernatural pattern for 40 years — a glory cloud by day and a fiery cloud by night. The glory/fiery cloud was the visible divine presence and protection of God. “Whether the cloud stayed above the Tabernacle for two days, a month, or a year, the people of Israel stayed in camp and did not move on. But as soon as it lifted, they broke camp and moved on. So they camped or traveled at the Lord’s command, and they did whatever the Lord told them through Moses” (Numbers 9:22-23 NLT). God never calls believers to do something that He won’t help us accomplish.

The Key: God is awesome! Day or night, He supplies all of our needs.

Criticizing our country for its moral decline is easy.  Tragically, there are worse.  Lauryn is the daughter of a Christian writer who recently asked that we add her to our prayer list.  I ask the same for you, my readers.  Lauryn traveled to Uganda with her law school to do plea bargains in a Ugandan prison. Her law school and university affiliated with that school have made it one of their ministries to free those wrongly incarcerated.

While in Uganda for ten days, Lauryn was able to identify two victims of human trafficking, plead down their cases to the judge and send them home the very next day to their families.  One girl was 18 years old, and the other had three children at home.  That happened a few months ago.

Recently, Lauryn returned to East Africa to help in the fight against child sacrifice.  As hard as it is to believe, that demonic practice was not even illegal until last year.  The law team learned that witchdoctors and witches (both genders can claim to be either) make money off of this practice.  A businessman or politician will pay these witches for a “blessing” for the business or election and will be told that that requires the sacrifice of one child.  Or the arm or leg of a child.  Many times, the child will die from the trauma.

Lauryn asked her mother to reach out to her prayer groups for prayer.  She knows that she is not just fighting against the people who participate in this heinous act but also the forces of darkness. We fellow authors were asked to pray alongside this mother, using Ephesians 6 as our guide:

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power.  Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore, put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.                                                                                                            

Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.  In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests.             

Lauryn visited some of the survivors of this horrible ritual and was able to hug and hold these children “who now live with a permanent disability” but are safe thanks to local ministries that are working to rescue these children.  Unfortunately, there are many children there who have no place to go, no parents to protect them, no home in which to shelter, and with 50% of the Uganda population under the age of 15, there is no shortage of children to sacrifice.

Lauryn’s mother asked for specific prayers, that the government will step up and not be bribed to look the other way and that the Lord will supernaturally intervene to save these children.  I would add that we also pray for the team of brave lawyers who have placed their lives on the line to stop this horrendous evil.

Keys to the Kingdom By Carolyn Tucker

You Get One Chance

As a fun way to spend an afternoon together, I met three of my girlfriends at a movie theatre out of town. Before I left, I made sure I had the correct name of the cinema and directions. When I pulled into the parking lot, the theatre had a different name from the one I’d been given. So I thought perhaps there were two cinemas close together, and I began slowly driving around the area. I decided to return and that’s when I saw the girls getting out of their car. I found out that when the theatre changed its name, a new sign had never been installed. Strike one. When Charlene began to place her order at the snack bar, she sweetly asked,  “Do you have Dr. Pepper?” “No.” “Do you have Mr. Pib?” “No.” Do you have Diet Coke?” “No.” “Do you have lemonade?” Finally, the concession worker answered in a toneless voice, “We have Diet Pepsi.” Strike two.

The attendant then told us to “go right and then right” to find our movie room. Come to find out, those directions were exactly backwards. Strike three. When we finally found the right room, we discovered an older couple sitting in two of our four seats. They refused to move over, so we just sat in the row in front of them. Strike four. In the middle of all these confusing, amusing, ridiculous, and annoying fiascos, I leaned over to Charlene and said, “If this were a church, I’d never come back.” We both chuckled.

Feeling confused, awkward, and ignored are three big strikes when a guest visits a  church. Charlene’s husband is a pastor and, many years ago, I distinctly remember Dennis saying, “You get one chance to make a good first impression.“ This is a sobering absolute truth, especially for the family of God. Generally speaking, the Church is not in the business of trying to impress people, but it is a Body of Believers who should go out of their way to make guests feel welcomed and valued on their first visit. We get one chance to do this right.

My wild experience at the movie theatre caused me to seriously evaluate my personal response to everybody (not just guests) in the House of the Lord. Not everyone feels as elated as King David did when he wrote, “I was glad when they said to me, ’Let us go into the house of the Lord’” (Psalm 122:1 NKJV). Some people enter the church building carrying burdens, experiencing emotional pain, sorrow, heartbreak, loneliness, etc. But the good news is that they made the right decision to come to church. I want to be better at reading faces and responding to people appropriately.

The apostle Paul wrote a powerful letter to the church of Ephesus. Since a church is made up of individuals, we all have to stand up, “own it” and say “ouch” or “amen.” Paul’s letter didn’t beat around the bush and is intended to ground, shape, and challenge believers. He writes: “Always be humble and gentle. Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other’s faults because of your love. Make every effort to keep yourselves united in the Spirit, binding yourselves together with peace” (Ephesians 4:2-3 NLT). He continues, “Let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes. Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them“ (Ephesians 4:23,29 NLT).

The Key: I’ve got my work cut out for me. Does anybody want to get on the bandwagon with me?

Keys to the Kingdom

As I looked out my kitchen window one morning, I spotted that familiar lone dove that’s been around since 2021. Like me, I think she’s a female. Then I watched a small bird beat a worm to death before he ate it. (Silly me, I always thought worms were eaten alive.) Nature was happily doing its thing. Next, I spotted a hawk on the ground with a baby rabbit in its talons. I was not pleased with this nature scene. I thought, “How dare you snatch one of my furry little animals without my permission! You’re on my property and you do that! How rude!”

I then wondered how many times I do things that aren’t pleasing to God? How many times do I just do “whatever” without asking Him first?  God doesn’t care what color of nail polish I choose, but He does care about my life-changer choices. It’s safe to say Christ-followers make too many decisions without consulting God. We treat too many big decisions like they’re nail polish choices — and that will always come back to bite us.

In the Old Testament, Joshua and his leaders made a pact with some foreigners without asking God about it. I’ve always thought this scripture intentionally sends a relevant message to believers today. “When the people of Gibeon heard what Joshua had done to Jericho and Ai, they resorted to deception to save themselves.” When the Gibeonite ambassadors arrived at the Israelite camp, they told Joshua and the men, “We have come from a distant land to ask you to make a peace treaty with us.” They lied through their teeth and the Israelites believed them. “So the Israelites examined their food, but they did not consult the Lord. Then Joshua made a peace treaty with them and guaranteed their safety, and the leaders of the community ratified their agreement with a binding oath” (see Joshua 9:1-14 NLT). Because God was omitted from their decision, this pact came back to bite them. God knew these ambassadors actually lived nearby instead of in a distant land, but no one consulted Him in order to make the right decision.

All throughout the Bible, God tells His children to “obey My voice.” He repeats Himself over and over and over, hoping we’ll get it. Believers need to keep His words in the forefront of our heart. Listening and obeying His voice is for our own good because we’re too much of a ding-a-ling to properly orchestrate our lives on our own. “But this is what I commanded them, saying, ‘Obey My voice, and I will be your God, and you will be My people; and you will walk in all the way which I command you, that it may be well with you.’” (Jeremiah 7:23 NASB). As a good Father, He wants His children to have an abundant life, but there are certain conditions. He will absolutely do His part if we will hold up our end of the deal.

“I hear the words of the Lord and act upon them [obeying them] like a sensible (prudent, practical, wise) man who built his house upon the rock. And the rain fell and the floods came and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall because it had been founded on the rock” (Matthew 7:24-25 AMP). When life tries to beat the tar out of us, maybe it’s because we didn’t ask God for His advice.

The Key: Let’s learn to do life in God’s rhythm and wisdom.

Just a few years ago, health was not an issue.  There were few doctor’s visits, long walks on the beach, morning tennis matches and drives around Mazatlán.  No longer. Some of us have sold our Mexican condominiums and moved back to the states, and some still spend a few weeks there each year.  All of us, however, are slowing down.

Last week, nine of us met in Steamboat Springs, Colorado, for a reunion.  Twenty-one originally committed to come, but most dropped out as “things” prevented them from joining the group: grandbabies being born; the failing health of a spouse; home repair issues.  For those of us who made the trip, we knew that it might be our last.

Bruce and Sharon drove from Oregon.  Bruce, a former basketball player and (now) coach, was relying on half of his lung capacity after being diagnosed with lung cancer.  Geoff and Sherrie came from Colorado Springs, Geoff in the middle of several doctor’s appointments with no answer as to why his legs were ceasing to function.  And then there were Howard and Joyce. Oh, my!

Howard turns 90 next month, and Joyce is 88.  When they told us that they were flying into Denver and renting a car to drive the three hours into the mountains, we all had our concerns.  When Joyce texted that they were on the edge of Steamboat, we were relieved.  They were about a mile away on Lincoln Avenue, the street where our rented condominium was located.  They couldn’t find us, even though Shelley and I were standing on the corner, waiting for them to spot us.

Every time Joyce told me where they were, they had passed us.  “I see you,” exclaimed Joyce.  “Shelley has on a white hat.”  No, Shelley didn’t.  After circling our block twice, Howard zoomed right past our intersection.  Joyce spotted us (the real “us,” not the lady in the hat).  We watched Howard make a U-turn in the middle of four lanes of traffic, zip into the handicap parking spot where we were standing, and get out of the car, without putting the car into park or turning it off.  This was going to be an adventure!

I reminded everyone to drink tons of water because of the altitude.  Joyce said that she didn’t like water.  I told her that it didn’t matter.  Altitude sickness was very real and no fun.  On our first day of girl-shopping, Joyce bent over to adjust her shoe and face-planted into a pile of clothes.  From that time on, she drank water.

Even though we began making plans for our next reunion, good-byes were hard.  We had been blessed with a sweet connection-time that might not happen again.  And here’s the saddest part: six of our friends are not Christians.  They are wonderful people, but they have no desire to know Jesus.  When I tell them that I will pray for them, they nod or say “thank you,” but our conversation ends there.  I don’t get it.

The ultimate reunion lies ahead for all of us who believe that Jesus lived and died for our sins. 1 Thessalonians 4:17-18 (MSG) should get us all excited about what lies ahead. “There will be one huge family reunion with the Master. So reassure one another with these words.”  How is God so easily dismissed?   Even though this Steamboat group understands how precious our time together was (and can’t wait for our next get together), even though they accept Dave and my faith, they reject the reunion that happens after we die…this heavenly banquet where the entire family of God gathers to celebrate the end of Death.  Aging.  Mourning.  Sickness.  Pain.  A broken relationship. Even altitude sickness.

It will be an adventure we dare not miss.

Keys to the Kingdom By Carolyn Tucker

Christian Fruitcakes

Generally speaking, most people have strong opinions about fruitcake. In the late 1970s, the company I worked for sent fruitcakes to their clients at Christmastime. At the end of the season there were a few left, so I would be given one. I still remember the perfect deliciousness of it — I was in fruitcake heaven! Sadly, a few years later, this particular brand was no longer available. I sampled a lot of dry and awful fruitcakes before I finally found one that came close to Colonial‘s Rainbow Fruitcake. When I visit with friends during the holidays that say they don’t like fruitcake, I always respond, “That’s because you’ve never eaten a good one. I love good fruitcake, but I hate bad fruitcake.”

When King David had the Ark of God brought to Jerusalem, it was a splendid  celebration. David and all the people were praising the Lord with all types of musical instruments, and the king was leaping and dancing before the Lord with all his might.  David blessed the Israelites and, “He distributed to all the people, the entire multitude of Israel, both men and women, one bread cake, one date cake, and one raisin cake to each one. Then all the people left, each to his house” (2 Samuel 6:18-19 MEV). This was the first fruitcake party recorded in the Old Testament. Because this special occasion was celebrated with fruitcakes, maybe that’s why we celebrate the birth of Jesus with fruitcakes. (Thankfully, we do a bunch of other things at Christmas besides eat fruitcake.)

I think Christians and fruitcakes are similar in the fact that some are good and some are bad. Not all fruitcakes are alike. The good fruitcakes get a bad rap because of the bad ones. And not all Christians are alike. Many represent Christ well and some…not so much. Jesus said, “If you know Me, you will know my Father also” (John 14:7 NRSA). Jesus represented His Father excellently. How well do we represent Jesus as we go about our daily lives at home, church, work, and play? Are we doing a good job or a bad job? Believers need to search their heart regularly to see if there’s any bad stuff that needs to be eradicated. We don’t want to be a bad representative of Jesus because that will delude and discourage others from coming to Christ. And it makes us look like a nut.

Being dry is one of the main issues that gives fruitcakes and Christians a bad rating. A dry Christian is often due to a lack of faithful church attendance and neglect of personal Bible study and prayer. A dry fruitcake is simply not worth the effort to chew it. Jesus said, “I know all the things you do, that you are neither hot nor cold. I wish that you were one or the other! But since you are like lukewarm water, neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of My mouth!“ (Revelation 3:15-16 NLT).

A Christ follower’s highest priority should be to live a Christ-like life. Onlookers need to see our actions backing up what we say we believe. The people we rub shoulders with need to see evidence of our faith and the fruit of the Spirit working in our lives. Love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control are essential and never go out of style. If we come up short on any of these ingredients, we can go to our merciful God to ask for help. He’s a good God who’s never in short supply. When we’re running low on essentials, God’s mercies to us are new every morning.

The Key: It’s OK to be nutty as a fruitcake as long as it’s a good one.  It’s those bad ones you have to watch out for.

Hubby Dave bought a new gizmo from some promotional ad he saw on his phone.  Actually, against my suggestion of buying one to test it out, he bought four because they were “such a great deal.”  Supposedly we will get 200 more television stations with this device.  Really?  My philosophy is that five stations are too many, but 200?

Hubby was excited to see how his new contraption worked, but quickly he realized that a degree in nuclear science is required to fit all the pieces together.  He decided to wait until his future grandson-in-law (with an electrical engineering degree) showed up to see if he had the answer.  He did.  We now have a plunger-looking antenna suctioned to our front door with a cord draped to the back of the television.

Of course, the Amazon description omitted this one, little detail: the television had to be near a window.  Ours is not.  It is, however, about four feet from the front door.  Thus, the most convenient place to attach the plunger.  Hubby says that I’m making a big deal out of nothing.  Our house is “full of cords.”  You know…cords that plug in the refrigerator, coffee pot, blow dryers, etc. (none of which, however, drape across a room and suction to a window or door).  I reminded him of this.

We live in a world of enticements.  There’s always something faster, smoother, cleaner, prettier, easier, quieter, bigger, or more efficient.  Seldomly do they live up to their hype or reveal the problems that come with them.  We know this, but we take the bait, anyway.  It’s no different with sin.

The first time I read in scripture about Satan tempting Jesus to prove he was God’s son, I wondered why Jesus didn’t just send a bolt of lightning to his enemy’s head.  If you remember the story, Jesus had fasted and prayed for 40 days when the enemy appeared and tried to entice Jesus. (I struggle with four hours, much less, 40 days.)  Satan began with a physical temptation, telling Jesus to turn stones into bread. Jesus had to be hungry, and the tempter knew right where to target Jesus’ weakness.  Jesus responded that man doesn’t live by bread alone but by “every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.”  Satan focused on the physical, but Jesus focused on the spiritual.

Satan’s next attempt was to transport Jesus into Jerusalem and placed Him at the highest point of the temple (roughly the equivalent height of a 41-story skyscraper).  Satan said, “If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down.”  He then quoted Psalm 91:11-12 (“For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways; they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone”).  Satan used those scriptures out of context because we are not to intentionally put ourselves in danger and expect God to protect us.  Jesus used scripture correctly and quoted Deuteronomy 6:16: “You shall not tempt the LORD your God.”

Satan pulled out his last offer.  He took Jesus to the top of a mountain and “showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory” (Matthew 4:8).  In other words, Jesus could have everything he wanted for his own personal power and position.  Once again, Jesus turned to scripture: “Away with you, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the LORD your God, and Him only you shall serve’” (Matthew 4:10).

The message to us is clear.  We need to know the Bible if we are to ward off temptation.  Trying to take on Satan without scripture’s directive is like ordering television gizmos without checking out the fine print.  Chances are, it will be a lesson we don’t want to learn.

Keys to the Kingdom

By Carolyn Tucker

Jack’s Snacks

One evening, while home alone watching one of my favorite movies and eating dry-roasted peanuts, I whispered, “I’ve turned into my dad.” When I was a kid, Dad and I would watch TV in the evenings and he’d always eat popcorn, mixed nuts, or salted peanuts in the shell. He actually had a microwave cart (as an end table) beside his swivel rocker because he stored his snacks in it. Just in the last few years I‘ve adopted his snack  habit (minus the microwave cart). There’s always bits and pieces of our parents in us because that is God’s design. Most of us are younger replicas of our mom or dad, or a combination of both. DNA is powerful and cannot be denied or erased. Jesus said, “When you look at Me you are seeing the One who sent me” (John 12:45 TPT).

When all the disciples were together, I think Jesus may have been saddened or  disappointed with Philip’s statement, “Lord, show us the Father and we will be satisfied.” “Jesus answered, ’Don’t you know Me, Philip? I have been among you such a long time! Anyone who has seen Me has seen the Father. So how can you say, ‘Show us the Father?’ Don‘t you believe that I am in the Father? Don‘t you believe that the Father is in Me? The words I say to you are not just My own. The Father lives in Me. He is the One who is doing His work“ (John 14:9-10 NIRV). Like Father, like Son.

While on earth, Jesus perfectly represented His Father in every aspect. All believers have a heavenly Father that’s perfect and awesome in every way. “Since you are children of a perfect Father in heaven, you are to be perfect like Him” (Matthew 5:48 TPT). If we take this verse out of context, then it sounds like a counsel of despair and impossibility. But in the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus is teaching on how to treat others (see Matthew 5:43-47). We are to aim at being perfect in how we love God and others. We’ll never be perfect in the sense that God is, but we are to focus on perfecting our love walk.

We are to emulate our heavenly Father rather than the messed-up worldly influencers in our culture. “Those who say they live in God should live their lives as Jesus did” (1 John 2:6 NLT). It makes sense that if we claim to be a Christian we must surely live like one.

“Imitate God, therefore, in everything you do, because you are His dear children. Live a life filled with love, following the example of Christ” (Ephesians 5:1-2 NLT). Maybe this scripture is why Peter Scholtes penned the hymn lyrics, “They’ll know we are Christians by our love.” All of our behavior is to be characterized by love. Apostle Peter wrote, “Respect everyone, and love your Christian brothers and sisters” (1 Peter 2:17). If love is AWOL in the Church Body, you can be sure that God is not being imitated.

Many years ago I read the book, “In His Steps” by Charles M. Sheldon. This best-selling Christian fiction novel made a positive impact on my life. The scriptures tell us that Jesus went about doing good. “Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good! His faithful love endures forever” (1 Chronicles 16:34). God is love and He is good. We are imitating  Jesus when we live our lives filled with love and go about doing good.

The Key: I doubt that God eats peanuts, but we should imitate Him anyway.

An old geezer, bored in retirement, decided to open a medical clinic.  He put a sign up outside that said, “Dr. Geezer’s clinic. Get your treatment for $500; if not cured, get back $1,000.”

Doctor Young, who was positive this old geezer didn’t know beans about medicine, thought this would be a great opportunity to get $1,000.  So, he went to Dr. Geezer’s clinic.

Dr. Young: “Dr. Geezer, I have lost all taste in my mouth. Can you please help me?”

Dr. Geezer: “Nurse, please bring medicine from box 22 and put 3 drops in Dr. Young’s mouth.”

Dr. Young: “Aaagh !!–This is Gasoline!”

Dr. Geezer: “Congratulations! You’ve got your taste back. That will be $500.”

An annoyed Dr. Young goes back after a couple of days, figuring to recover his money.

Dr. Young: “I have lost my memory; I cannot remember anything.”

Dr. Geezer: “Nurse, please bring medicine from box 22 and put 3 drops in the patient’s mouth.”

Dr. Young: “Oh, no you don’t, — that is Gasoline!”

Dr. Geezer: “Congratulations! You’ve got your memory back. That will be $500.”

Dr. Young (after having lost $1000) leaves angrily and comes back in a few days.

Dr. Young: “My eyesight has become weak — I can hardly see anything!!!!”

Dr. Geezer: “Well, I don’t have any medicine for that, so here’s your $1000 back” (giving him a $10 bill).

Dr. Young: “But this is only $10!”

Dr. Geezer: “Congratulations! You got your vision back! That will be $500.”

Moral of story — Just because you’re “Young” doesn’t mean that you can outsmart an “old Geezer.”

There are few nursing homes in Mexico.  That’s because families make tremendous sacrifices to honor the elderly, keeping them in their homes to care for them until they die.  Siblings and husband/wife teams work various shifts so that the aging parent is not left alone. Shopping centers and restaurants reveal the respect shown, as it is common to see children and grandchildren cradling the arms of their aged relatives, helping them out of the car and walking slowly to their destination.  When the elders speak, everyone listens.  Their wisdom is valued.

For 10 years, Jaime has worked as a bartender where we live in Mazatlán. His mother-in-law has lived with his family for 18 years.  Every morning, he makes breakfast for her; they sit together and catch up on what is going on in each other’s life.  Countless times, he has bowed out of morning invitations because of his “special time” with his wife’s mother.  Mexicans believe that God expects them to appreciate the elderly.  Scripture agrees:

Likewise, you who are younger, be subject to the elders. Clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility toward one another, for “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” (1 Peter 5:5, ESV) Gray hair is a crown of glory; it is gained in a righteous life. (Prov. 16:31)   Wisdom is with the aged, and understanding in length of days. (Job 12:12)                                                      

  One story is played out in the book of Ruth when Naomi’s husband moved his family from Bethlehem to Moab where he died.  Ten years later, their married, adult sons also died. Naomi opted to move back to her native country. Ruth, Naomi’s widowed daughter-in-law, insisted on accompanying her in spite of Naomi’s protests.  In the end, the Moabite Ruth married the Bethlehemite Boaz, and, generations later, Jesus was born from that union.

I wish I would have done more for my mother before she died.  I certainly had opportunities to do so.  I pray you do better than I did…before it’s too late.