Reluctant Retiree

I am a baseball fan and have been watching seceral Major League Baseball games lately. It has been strange to watch games with no fans in the ballparks. I admit that it is not as exciting to watch games without the enthusiasm of the fans. It makes me wonder if it is real.

It also makes me wonder what is more important, outside appearance or the quality of what is inside. The ballpark’s outside appearance is not impressive these days. What is going on inside, however is just as exciting as ever.

Does this apply to us? I think that what is going on inside of us is more important than our appearance. We may have a beautiful countenance, popularity, and/or wealth but be miserable inside. On the other hand our appearance may not be too attractive but we experience great joy and fufillment.

God is more concerned with our hearts than he is with appearances. He would rather we be generous, loving and humble rather than we become famous or wealthy.

When Israel wanted a king, they looked for a man of great physical stature. They chose Saul. That did not work well. Saul did not walk with God and the nation suffered. God chose the next king, David. David was young and small, but he was a man after God’s own heart. The nation thrived under David’s rule.

I Samuel 16:7 says, “Do not look upon his appearance or upon the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. For the Lord sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.”

I have been hearing a lot about integrity lately. To me, integrity means matching your walk with your talk. Often times people express their values, but their actions do not match those values.

Politicians do this all the time. For instance, we once had a candidate for governor who actively sought help for the poor. This is a fine value and one which most people can support. Her tax return revealed, however, that she gave very little to charities. In fact, she gave less than 0.3% of her rather high income to charities.

I used to see a lit of bumper stickers with a peace symbol. These same people were often cutting people off in traffic and making obscene gestures, hardly promoting peace.

I faced a question of integrity last week. I promised my grandson that I would go outside and play catch with him. Unfortunately, I got ill and couldn’t follow through. However, when I saw him a couple days later, I remembered my promise and played catch with him. He was happy.

However, I have learned that I very often fail to match my walk to my talk. When I talk I express high and lofty ideals that I just don’t measure up to. How can I begin to walk in integrity? First I need to admit my weaknesses. Then I have to ask God for help and follow where he leads me. Psalm 26:1 says, “Vindicate me , O Lord, for I have walked in my integrity, and I have trusted in the Lord without wavering.”

I walk every day, sometimes up to 16 miles a day. Today I intended to walk a lot less. Within the first two miles I stumbled on a crack in the sidewalk and fell. Fortunately I wound up with several scrapes but no breaks.

This reminded me about the fragility of life. We can be going along quite smoothly, when all of a sudden, something trips us up. The obstacle could be outside ourselves like a financial setback or layoff. It could also be a mistake that we make ourselves, like letting anger get out of control. Either way we get off track and it takes a lot of energy and time to get back on track.

How can we stay on track? Psalm 119:105 says, “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.” God’s Word can lead us step by step. That doesn’t always prevent the obstacles along the way but it does show us the way through those obstacles and how to stay on track.

I am a unique individual. But so are you. There is only one of each of us. We are like snowflakes, no two are alike.

I have strengths and weaknesses. I also have some peculiarities. Some I like and some I don’t. Some other people like and some they don’t. Sometimes I boast of my strengths, only to be humbled by circumstances or other people. Sometimes I am ashamed of my weaknesses.

Am I content with my weaknesses? Hardly, I want to eliminate them and turn them into strengths. But no matter how hard I try, I don’t seem to make progress. Willpower doesn’t seem to be enough. I need help to become the person I want to be. Where does this help come from?

For me the only help I can find and the only help I need is found in Jesus. Romans 12:2 says, “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” To be transformed into the man I want to be I need to be renewed by understanding God’s will and allow him to change me.

What makes your heart beat fast? Is it:

Your favorite team winning a championship

Seeing your favorite celebrity at Starbucks

The aroma of Starbucks coffee in the morning

Seeing your child enjoy an achievement

Watching your child be born

All of these events and more may make our hearts beat faster. The enjoyment energizes our emotions and raises our spirits.

Yesterday I experienced a different type of fast heartbeat. All of a sudden my pulse increased to over 160 beats per minute. At first I wasn’t sure what I was feeling or what to do. I had not experienced this before. Fortunately after a short time my wife called my cardiologist and we went to the emergency room.

Medical personnel reacted as you would hope and a flurry of activity happened around me. I was hooked up to an EKG and pumped with medicine through an IV. Chest xrays were taken and blood was drawn. The teamwork and precision of nurses was amazing.

And then the calm took place. My heart reacted properly to the medicine and the heartbeat decreased significantly. Everybody else left the room and I was left alone. It was eerily quiet. I was comfortable and relaxed as I waited.

I don’t yet know the end result. I am out of the hospital but a consultation with a specialist was arranged and I was given a prescription for a new medicine. Now we wait.

Through this experience, I am reminded of the brevity of life. Even though life is short, we only get one chance at it. We should consider our choices carefully and examine how we affect others. I saw a guy on the news the other day explain why he won’t wear a mask during this pandemic. He said, “I am not going to wear a mask just so you can feel safe.” That statement told me a lot about the man. He has little concern for others and will not bear the smallest inconvenience for other people. His impact upon others is probably generally pretty negative.

I don’t want to have a negative impact on others. I want to leave a positive legacy for others. I make mistakes and regret the impact of those mistakes upon others. But generally I try to offer good in what I do.

The apostle Paul wrote “Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends.” I want to demonstrate that type of love. And yes, I wear a mask in public.

I am currently sitting in our livingroom on a bright clear sunny day. However, there is smoke and a putrid smell coming into the room. Outside a team of workers are laying asphalt. The burning tar smoke and smell has made it into the room.

I am reminded that there are are times when we are comfortable and enjoying ourselves, while all the time we are creating a putrid smell for others. We may be exhibiting a selfishness that offends. At times like these our lack of concern and compassion spreads a foul odor that reduces others to but a faint vapor.

We need to open our eyes to the imact that our selfishness and self-centeredness has on others. Then we can see the needs of others and how we can serve them and honor them. Serving and honoring others removes the barriers that divide us. Prejudice is then overcome. Harmony is promoted.

The apostle Paul admonishes us to “Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others as more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.” Philippians 2:3-4 ESV

I play on a vintage base ball (Note: it was two words originally) team in Indiana. We play by the rules of the game in 1858. One of the major differences to today’s game is that baseball gloves had not been invented, so everyone played barehanded. Players, or ballists as they were called then, have to field batted balls and throw out runners without the benefit of a glove. One concession is that flyballs can be fielded on a single hop for an out. The ball us about the same size and almost as hard.

The whole atmosphere around the game then was much different than it is nowadays. Games where arranged between neighboring communities. On gameday one whole community would travel to the other community for a day of fun, base ball and picnicing. The game was played in a gentlemenly manner. The pitcher, or hurler, would underhand the pitch to the general area where the batter, or striker, could easily hit it. So there were few strikeouts and the ball was quickly put in play, unlike today’s game. There was an umpire, or arbiter, but his role was simply to arbitrate or make a decision on a close play if the two sides could not make a decision amongst themselves. Ballists could not and would not argue a call. Such indiscretion would result in a small fine. Both teams would encourage each other, often calling the striker to “Strike well”.

After the game, the home community would provide a meal and the two communities would enjoy each other’s friendship in a picnic that often lasted several hours.

That’s how we play vintage base ball today, including the postgame meal together. It is all very friendly and uplifting. Anyone can play. I am 70 years old and we have players in their teens. Often younger kids participate by running for us older folk.

Look for a team in your area and try to catch a game. You will enjoy the fun and comraderie.

While only a few of us are Christians, vintage base ball reminds me of true community.

Ephesians 4:32 says, “Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God in Christ has forgiven you.” These attitudes are Biblical but also just make good sense for building the spirit of community for all of us.

A local television station uses “First Fast and Accurate” as their slogan in advertising. The first two adjectives cannot be evaluated as their is no independent criteria to determine who was first or fast.

The third adjective, Accurate, is also hard to evaluate, but for a different reason. If you were to read a news article or listen to reporters from different news agencies you are likely to get as many different stories on the same subject as journalists reporting.

Most of the variations are due to political leanings or biases of the reporters. All news agencies and journalists like to say that they are unbiased and report the truth. In recent years it has become obvious that this is simply not true.

When I lived in a foreign country I used to complain about the biased reporting. The only news came from a government television station and was extremely controlled by the government. I told everyone that this controlled and biased reporting would never happen in the states. Boy was I wrong!

So where can we find truthful and accurate reporting on the state of affairs and the human condition? Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth and the life.” You want to know about life, come to the creator and sustainer of life. You want the truth, come to the author of all truth. You want to know about how to live, come to the only one who can show you the way.

Philippians 4:4 says, “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice.” When am I supposed to be happy? Always! You mean even in the face of a pandemic and widespread protests and violence? Yes!

How?

The verse says to be happy in the Lord. So first you must have a relationship with the Lord. This means that you trust Him to be in control and powerful enough to make all things work together for your good (Romans 8:28).

You see Joy is a choice that leads to feelings, not the other way around. So even in hard circumstances we can choose to be joyful because God has got your back.

To those outside of Christ this may sound overly optimistic. To us who believe in Jesus, however, this is truth based upon His Word and how he has proven himself to us over and over. So to the sceptic I say that you will never know the Lord’s goodness until you believe.

Not long after we meet someone we ask, “So what do you do?” It is usually an innocent question with very little social risk. But it also implies that this is an important question to get to know someone. We are suggesting that we are what we do.

However, we are so much more than just what we do. I am not just a manager, I am also a husband, father, grandfather, compassionate soul, lover of people, and a believer in Jesus. In fact these other aspects of me are far more important than what I do.

I am reading a book right now that distinguishes between our faith calling and our vocational calling. Our vocational calling is what we do, so we say things like I am a nurse or a clerk. More or less we feel called to these jobs whether by circumstance or genuine interest.

Our faith calling is why we do something. We say things like I am a nurse because I want to help people. So we try to be the best nurse we can, so that we can help as much as we can. Our faith calling drives us to be who we are.

My faith calling is derived from what Jesus said were the two greatest commandments; to love God with all your heart, mind and strength, and to love your neighbor as you love yourself. Since this is my faith calling, everything I do should reflect this calling, whether it be in my vocational calling or interrelationally. I wish I could say that I always succeed in that, but honestly I fail often. I can say, however, that these two commands are the heart of what I want to do and be.