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What-a-Way-to-Go · INSIGHT FOR LIVING: Biblical Wisdom For Everyday Living

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Speaker 1: Into the prostia.
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Speaker 2: Say the s.
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Speaker 1: Shouted it, say hole below a long eagle to the
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Speaker 1: field up from so long Asia Zada lesson is t
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Speaker 1: roomade for reverent u case mosia Lozana lesson is a
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Speaker 1: god us as in the name of the crowds of
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Speaker 1: me long cat say close, say along just the songs
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Speaker 1: of cheer Asanasana lesson is of his Fulsanasana lessons a
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Speaker 1: bondy cos name.
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Speaker 2: It's interesting how words are woven into the lyrics of
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Speaker 2: hymns and anthems at certain times of the year. You'll
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Speaker 2: hear a lot during this time of the year the
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Speaker 2: word Hosanna Hosannah. It actually is not an English word,
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Speaker 2: that is a that's called a transliteration of a Hebrew word,
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Speaker 2: and the Hebrew term is hoshia nah hoshia nah. It
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Speaker 2: appears first in Psalm one eighteen, and then it is
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Speaker 2: repeated when you get to the Gospels. As the people
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Speaker 2: who gathered around to welcome jesus arrival in the city
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Speaker 2: shouted that. The word means save now, save now. The
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Speaker 2: whole thought of rescue us or deliver us. If you
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Speaker 2: were on a roof during a during a flood and
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Speaker 2: you saw a helicopter or a boat come near, and
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Speaker 2: you were speaking that you could say, Hoshianah, save me, now,
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Speaker 2: rescue me. Now. I think it's helpful to know as
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Speaker 2: we sing songs like this, to know what it is
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Speaker 2: that we are saying and singing. Another one was Emmanuel.
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Speaker 2: You remember hearing that one. Emmanu Ale. It's another Hebrew
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Speaker 2: word that means God with us, God with us, And
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Speaker 2: so it was said of Jesus when he came, he
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Speaker 2: was Immanuel, God in the flesh, God with us. Well,
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Speaker 2: you've had your Hebrew lesson for the day. There'll be
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Speaker 2: a test at the end of the service. Not really.
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Speaker 2: The only reason we share that is to give you
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Speaker 2: a little insight and to make your worship meaningful. Otherwise,
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Speaker 2: your mouthing words that may be traditional, but they mean nothing.
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Speaker 2: Learn to be curious, learn to be a student of words.
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Speaker 2: They're the building blocked of thought. And of course, where
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Speaker 2: would we be in our day without words that help
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Speaker 2: us understand a message. The words found in Genesis twenty five.
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Speaker 2: The first ten verses cover an epical time in Abraham's
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Speaker 2: later life. He's getting way up in years as we
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Speaker 2: gauge age, but his life is far from over. As
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Speaker 2: a matter of fact, he had many experiences ahead of
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Speaker 2: him as he reaches age. Before he dies at the
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Speaker 2: age of one hundred and seventy five. We'll read of
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Speaker 2: some of those things here, which is a passage that
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Speaker 2: deals with things found nowhere else in your Bible. Stand
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Speaker 2: together for the reading of the first ten verses of
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Speaker 2: Genesis twenty five. Now Abraham took another wife, whose name
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Speaker 2: was Keturah. She bore to him Zimran and jack Shan,
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Speaker 2: and Medan and Midian, and Ishbak and Shuah. Jack Shan
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Speaker 2: became the father of Sheba and Deedan. And the sons
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Speaker 2: of Dedan were Asherim, le Tushim, and le Umim. The
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Speaker 2: sons of Midian were Efa and Efhr and Hannok and
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Speaker 2: Avida and Elda. All these were the sons of Katura.
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Speaker 2: Now Abraham gave all all that he had to Isaac,
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Speaker 2: but to the sons of his concubines. Abraham gave gifts
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Speaker 2: while he was still living, and sent them away from
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Speaker 2: his son Isaac eastward to the land of the East.
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Speaker 2: These are all the years of Abraham's life that he
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Speaker 2: lived one hundred and seventy five years Abraham breathed his
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Speaker 2: last and died in a ripe old age, an old
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Speaker 2: man and satisfied with life, and he was gathered to
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Speaker 2: his people. Then his sons Isaac and Ishmael buried him
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Speaker 2: in the cave of Makpilah in the field of Ephron,
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Speaker 2: the son of Zohar, the Hittite facing memory, the field
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Speaker 2: which Abraham purchased from the sons of Death. There Abraham
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Speaker 2: was buried with Sarah's wife. Please be seated. I heard
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Speaker 2: a psychologists speak years ago as he addressed the subject
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Speaker 2: of death, and his words were not to be forgotten.
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Speaker 2: They were certainly not said lightly. He said, the last
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Speaker 2: place a person can imagine himself or herself is in
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Speaker 2: a casket. Strangely, that is where we will all be
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Speaker 2: one day, either a body in a casket or ashes
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Speaker 2: in a vase. Grim though it may sound, it is
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Speaker 2: important that you anticipate that reality while you're alive. If
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Speaker 2: you have not, the future is bleak beyond telling. Christ
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Speaker 2: taught more about Hell than he ever did about Heaven.
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Speaker 2: Many mysteries surround Heaven, very few surround the place of
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Speaker 2: the departed. Unbelievers, there is no purgatory. There is no
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Speaker 2: second chance. There is no opportunity after you have breathed
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Speaker 2: your last to say, wait a minute, on second thought,
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Speaker 2: Now there is no opportunity like that. While you are alive,
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Speaker 2: you make your decision regarding life after death, because you
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Speaker 2: will live forever. So what do you decide? First, you
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Speaker 2: understand that you're really not ready to live until you're
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Speaker 2: ready to die. Once you have been made ready to live,
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Speaker 2: death holds no fear. The jaws of death are broken
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Speaker 2: with the promise of resurrection. See that cross on a cross,
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Speaker 2: something like that. A man died, Why would he die
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Speaker 2: if there were not a need, especially since he was
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Speaker 2: God's son? Because God so loved you and me that
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Speaker 2: he gave his one and only son that whoever would
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Speaker 2: believe in him would never perish, but would have everlasting life,
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Speaker 2: meeting life with God. Who has the Son has that life.
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Speaker 2: He who does not have the sun of God does
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Speaker 2: not have that life. It's that serious, it's that epical.
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Speaker 2: And the wonderful thing about our Savior, whose life transcends time,
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Speaker 2: is what he says regarding life beyond the grave. The
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Speaker 2: body is placed in a casket or in a vase,
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Speaker 2: but the person himself or herself. The soul is timeless,
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Speaker 2: cannot be destroyed, will last forever the last resurrection, of course,
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Speaker 2: the body is raised and joined the soul to be
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Speaker 2: forever with the Lord. If you know the Lord, if
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Speaker 2: you've met the Lord during your lifetime. If you have not,
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Speaker 2: the alternative is dreadful, too horrible to imagine. Unless that
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Speaker 2: sound too narrow, Please understand. Jesus himself said, I am
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Speaker 2: the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No one comes
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Speaker 2: to the Father but through me. So it is a
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Speaker 2: great time before an offering is received, and even during
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Speaker 2: the time for every one of us to search our
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Speaker 2: souls to make sure that we are ready for our
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Speaker 2: last breath. For if you wait all then it is
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Speaker 2: too late. You're not really ready to live until you're
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Speaker 2: ready to die. If you're ready to die, so much
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Speaker 2: of life unfolds in a magnificent and even enjoyable way.
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Speaker 2: So as believers today give their gifts, this is a
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Speaker 2: great moment for you who don't know the Lord, to
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Speaker 2: receive the gift God has for you. He comes to
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Speaker 2: us without any responsibility on our part except to believe
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Speaker 2: in him, to trust him. Maybe bow together in these
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Speaker 2: quiet moments, Our Father, we want to thank you for
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Speaker 2: taking care of all things pertaining to life here and beyond.
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Speaker 2: Thank you for leaving nothing to chance. Thank you for
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Speaker 2: caring so much for us that you not only care
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Speaker 2: how we live, you care how we die. And we
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Speaker 2: see before us in black print on white pages, the
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Speaker 2: story of a great life. But even he died, not
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Speaker 2: even a man as great in faith as Abraham would
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Speaker 2: live on this earth forever. He too would breathe his last.
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Speaker 2: And so in this moment of reflection and quietness, here
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Speaker 2: are hearts today, Lord, as we affirm our faith in
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Speaker 2: your son again that relationship by faith. Thank You for
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Speaker 2: the significance of the season. Thank you for the meaningful
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Speaker 2: week that unfolds before us. On that final week of
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Speaker 2: our saviour's earthly life. How significant were the events that
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Speaker 2: ultimately brought him to gethsemone, and then the cross, and
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Speaker 2: then the grave and then beyond, as he broke free
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Speaker 2: from death to live forever and to promise us the
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Speaker 2: same kind of resurrection. We exult in that, Lord, and
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Speaker 2: we will never weary of the message of hope that
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Speaker 2: that brings, though it is for some frightening for those
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Speaker 2: who are not ready. It represents the dread of their lives.
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Speaker 2: So we pray that we'll be lifted and that this
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Speaker 2: problem will be solved, and that we will realize how
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Speaker 2: magnificent your message is. To have the son is to
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Speaker 2: have life. Not to have the son is to accept
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Speaker 2: the consequences. On this day, our Father, we rejoice over
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Speaker 2: that triumphal entry, as our Savior came into the city
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Speaker 2: that wanted nothing to do with him, As he was
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Speaker 2: met by those few who loved him and had followed him,
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Speaker 2: we realized that even today the majority will never realize
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Speaker 2: the importance of eternal faith in your Son Jesus. And
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Speaker 2: so in this place to day pray that we might
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Speaker 2: be lost in the wonder, love and praise of his
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Speaker 2: great name. Our hearts are touched by those who are
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Speaker 2: on the battlefield to day, lonely places, those whose whose
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Speaker 2: presence fills a hospital, are sick beds at home or
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Speaker 2: in places preparing for death. We pray that you will
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Speaker 2: minister in a deep and abiding way this Easter week
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Speaker 2: to bring hope in place of despair and relief from
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Speaker 2: guilt and shame. Thank you enough, Father for the joy
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Speaker 2: of giving, and we give with great gratitude that we're
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Speaker 2: able to give and with generosity, as we thank you
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Speaker 2: for all you give to us in the name of Christ,
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Speaker 2: we pray and we give these gifts. And everyone said, amen.
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Speaker 2: Ever thought about how you hope to die? It may
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Speaker 2: sound like a pretty morbid question, but I don't mean
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Speaker 2: it that way. As a matter of fact, some people
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Speaker 2: don't think it's as serious as it may sound. One
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Speaker 2: of my all time favorite statements has to do with
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Speaker 2: a very subject of death, where one man wrote, when
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Speaker 2: I die, I want to go like my grandfather did,
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Speaker 2: peacefully in his sleep, in his sleep, not screaming and
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Speaker 2: yelling like the other people in his car. I know,
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Speaker 2: I know it is not a funny subject.
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Speaker 1: I know that.
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Speaker 2: On the other hand, why does that to be so
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Speaker 2: off far serious and depressing? You See, when I ask
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Speaker 2: you about how you hope to die, the question is how.
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Speaker 2: I'm not asking you about the way you plan to die.
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Speaker 2: We don't know that. It's the condition of your mind
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Speaker 2: and your heart when you do. It's a matter of
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Speaker 2: when you die, what will be your frame of mind?
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Speaker 2: Think about it, your attitude, your lifestyle at the time
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Speaker 2: death approaches. How will you be spending your days prior
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Speaker 2: to your breathing your last. Tragically, for many, the same
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Speaker 2: sad epitaph could be used etched in the granite slab
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Speaker 2: above the grave died age forty five, buried age seventy five.
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Speaker 2: Many die before they breathe their last. They just stop living,
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Speaker 2: stop draining from life all the joys and purpose and
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Speaker 2: pleasure that was meant to hold for them. They figure
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Speaker 2: after a certain age, well it's over, it's all history,
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Speaker 2: it's all said and done. Bring it on, and they're
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Speaker 2: thirty five or forty. Mummification sets in far too many
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Speaker 2: young men and women when they should be ripping the
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Speaker 2: world apart, making a contribution that will outlast them and
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Speaker 2: live in their legacy. Need an example, well, listen to
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Speaker 2: the words of the late Ted Engstrom, who wrote Motivation
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Speaker 2: to Last a Lifetime. This appears in that book. Many
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Speaker 2: people reading this page are doing so with the aid
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Speaker 2: of bifocals. Inventor Ben Franklin, aged seventy nine. The presses
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Speaker 2: that printed this page were powered by electricity. One of
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Speaker 2: the first harnessers of electricity, Ben Franklin, age forty Some
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Speaker 2: are reading this on the campus of one of the
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Speaker 2: Ivy League universities founder Ben Franklin, age forty five. Others
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Speaker 2: of you are in a library, who founded the first
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Speaker 2: library in America. Ben Franklin, age twenty five, now think fire,
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Speaker 2: who started the first fire department, invented the lightning rod,
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Speaker 2: designed a heating stove that in some places is still
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Speaker 2: in use today. Ben Frankly ages thirty one forty three
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Speaker 2: thirty six, with conversationalists, economist, philosopher, diplomat, printer, publisher, linguist,
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Speaker 2: spoke and wrote five languages advocate of paratroopers a century
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Speaker 2: before the airplane was invented, all until the age of
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Speaker 2: eighty four, and he had exactly two years of formal
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Speaker 2: education two years. It's a good bet that you already
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Speaker 2: have more sheer knowledge than Bren Franklin ever had when
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Speaker 2: he was your age. But he lived all the way
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Speaker 2: to eighty four. He didn't die at age thirty or
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Speaker 2: forty or fifty or seventy. Died when he breathed his
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Speaker 2: last at eighty four. And if I know anything about
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Speaker 2: that mind as I read of him, that mind was
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Speaker 2: active on other things that he was working on right
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Speaker 2: to the end. You see, active participation in life can
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Speaker 2: be wonderfully exhilarating. You know what wears us out makes
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Speaker 2: us want to die young. It's the monotonous mundane that
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Speaker 2: leaves us old and useless in crotchety and crank. I'm
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Speaker 2: going to tell you something that your close friend hasn't
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Speaker 2: told you recently. You're getting hard to live with. Okay,
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Speaker 2: some of you, it's more emphatic than to others of you.
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Speaker 2: You need to look at yourself and ask why why
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Speaker 2: have you chosen to die so young when God has
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Speaker 2: chosen to give you a long life. This past week
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Speaker 2: I had my annual physical exam at the Cooper Clinic
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Speaker 2: here in Dallas. My exam was done by the man himself,
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Speaker 2: doctor Kenneth Cooper. I don't know of anyone I admire more.
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Speaker 2: The founder of that clinic goes all the way back
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Speaker 2: to nineteen seventy, back when they thought the word aerobics
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Speaker 2: was a reference to a religious cult. Hardly, this man,
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Speaker 2: with his vision of preventive medicine, has put the whole
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Speaker 2: subject on the map. Still active, still engaged, still excited
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Speaker 2: about getting the message out. Now his heart is set
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Speaker 2: on China. They're inviting him to come and give consideration
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Speaker 2: of putting clinics all across that land, over a billion people,
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Speaker 2: most of whom are obese or many are as here.
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Speaker 2: How old is kin Copper? Eighty two and he can
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Speaker 2: outrun any one of us? I can tell you what
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Speaker 2: a man, how different he is from most eighty two
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Speaker 2: year olds who are whining their way to the grave,
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Speaker 2: not nearly as anxious to die as those around them
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Speaker 2: that you die. I don't know how often I'm asked,
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Speaker 2: when are you going to retire? Never? I don't usually,
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Speaker 2: I don't usually yell it like that. But I don't
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Speaker 2: know why that question is asked. You know why, because
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Speaker 2: we live in a culture where when you get this age,
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Speaker 2: you retire, You hang it up. You play that stupid
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Speaker 2: game where you knock a little white ball into a
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Speaker 2: hole that's much too small. It needs to be bigger
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Speaker 2: for me to be interested in golf, And I'd stay
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Speaker 2: interested in it for maybe two or three games, and
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Speaker 2: then I'd give you my clubs. Who needs golf when
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Speaker 2: there are people to build my life into, and books
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Speaker 2: to read and things to think, and ideas to carry
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Speaker 2: out and vision to accomplish. Retire Nothing wrong with retirement,
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Speaker 2: just so you don't hang it up. Just move into
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Speaker 2: another direction. Do your relatives a favor, keep living, keep
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Speaker 2: being engaged, keep laughing. How important is the sense of humor.
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Speaker 2: One of our tours that Cynthia and I were leading,
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Speaker 2: a fellow put this in my hand. After an overnight
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Speaker 2: flight to meet my father at his latest military assignment,
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Speaker 2: my mother wearily arrived at Rhinemain Airbase in Germany with
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Speaker 2: my eight siblings and me, all under age eleven. Collecting
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Speaker 2: our many suitcases. The ten of us entered the cramped
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Speaker 2: customs area. Young customs official watched our entourage in disbelief.
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Speaker 2: Man he asked, do all these children and this luggage
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Speaker 2: belong to you? Sure? My mother said, with a sigh,
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Speaker 2: they're all mine. Custom agent began his interrogation, ma'am do
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Speaker 2: you have any weapons, contraband, alcoholic beverages, or legal drugs
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Speaker 2: in your position? She calmly answered, sir, If I had
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Speaker 2: any of those items, I would have used them all
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Speaker 2: by now. What a great sense of humor. How pleasant
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Speaker 2: you look when you laugh, How delightful you are to
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Speaker 2: be around. When you're looking at the bright side, you're
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Speaker 2: surrounded by those who focus on the somber dark side,
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Speaker 2: which is why in the Twilight Years there are these
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Speaker 2: common reactions we come across. First is narcissism. It's a great,
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Speaker 2: big four bit word that means it's all about me.
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Speaker 2: Did you realize? It's an ultra selfish mindset and it
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Speaker 2: pervades our society. It's everywhere, not just among the aging,
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Speaker 2: but especially there. It says an effect, leave me alone.
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Speaker 2: I've earned my right to my own privacy. This is
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Speaker 2: my world, this is what I want to do. And
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Speaker 2: I paid my dues, paid my dues. I have looked
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Speaker 2: all the way through the scriptures to find paid my dues.
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Speaker 2: Who paid? It's not there. It's narcissism. You don't pay
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Speaker 2: any dues. Life's a gift, What a privilege to live it,
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Speaker 2: What a joy it is to carry out the assignment,
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Speaker 2: regardless of your calling, regardless. Narcissism leads them to pessimism.
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Speaker 2: I hardly need to describe that. It's a person who
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Speaker 2: moans and complains I have nothing to contribute. I'm over
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Speaker 2: the hill. Everybody notices, nobody cares. I've been kicked out
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Speaker 2: of life, so I've decided to just quit. My past
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Speaker 2: is meaningless and my future is bleak. Woe is me,
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Speaker 2: what a terrible way to think. You think God isn't
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Speaker 2: able to take you when he's ready to take you
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Speaker 2: at least a fatalism. This person lives to die. The
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Speaker 2: only thing in front of me is a grave or
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Speaker 2: evasive ashes. He or she has run out of hope,
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Speaker 2: no energy, sees nothing interesting or important on the horizon,
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Speaker 2: no sense of purpose. There's no sense of humor, which
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Speaker 2: means there is no reason to keep on living. And
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Speaker 2: I'll tell you the misery index of that mentality is
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Speaker 2: woefully high. You bring no joy to those around you.
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Speaker 2: And for the life of me, I cannot figure out
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Speaker 2: why a person would want to choose to think like that.
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Speaker 2: Because you're thinking is your choice. No one makes you
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Speaker 2: think a certain way. You choose to think like that.
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Speaker 2: Enough of that, Enough of that. I've stayed on it
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Speaker 2: for too long a time. But it's because there is
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Speaker 2: so much of that kind of thinking around us that
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Speaker 2: when you are an exception to it, people can't believe you.
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Speaker 2: They don't expect you to have a great sense of humor.
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Speaker 2: You pass seventy five and get into the eighties eighty five,
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Speaker 2: expect you to be long faced and short winded, making
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Speaker 2: plans on which casket you want used for your service.
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Speaker 2: The misery index is high in that whole mentality, and
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Speaker 2: I suggest we fight it like the plague. How unlike Abraham,
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Speaker 2: even though he would seem to be a poster child
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Speaker 2: for these very things narcissism and pessimism and fatalism, there
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Speaker 2: was none of that in his life. None none, I
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Speaker 2: mean and heartbreaking moment he buries his wife Sarah. He's
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Speaker 2: one hundred and thirty seven. You would think you'd go home,
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Speaker 2: pull the shades, lock the door, and plead with God
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Speaker 2: let him die? Why why would you do that? Calls
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Speaker 2: the shots on death. So he doesn't you know? By
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Speaker 2: now in chapter twenty five, he's pushing about one hundred
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Speaker 2: and forty one hundred and forty two, one hundred and
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Speaker 2: forty three years of age for starters, He's lost his
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Speaker 2: lifelong companion. He's been through the ups and downs with
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Speaker 2: a nephew that was irresponsible. Not a word of bitterness
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Speaker 2: in his life about lot. By the way, He's now alone.
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Speaker 2: His son is married, found a lovely bride, and Isaac
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Speaker 2: and Rebecca ride off into the sunset with a romance
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Speaker 2: and delight and marriage all over the place, and here
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Speaker 2: he's left with an empty house. So what on earth
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Speaker 2: does he have to live for? What's his future? Well,
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Speaker 2: it's quite surprising for starters. He marries another woman. Verse
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Speaker 2: one took another wife whose name was Coutrura. She's not
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Speaker 2: mentioned that much in the Bible. First Chronicles one, Verses
33:10
Speaker 2: thirty two and thirty three mentioned her in another context.
33:14
Speaker 2: But he chooses her and she becomes his bride. And
33:18
Speaker 2: some of you are frowning, thinking why would he want
33:20
Speaker 2: to do that? And I answer why not. Furthermore, it's
33:26
Speaker 2: none of your business. Nobody died and left you in
33:30
Speaker 2: charge of who ought to get married? When, Thank goodness,
33:35
Speaker 2: he'd had a great relationship with Sarah. He enjoyed a
33:38
Speaker 2: home and a marriage and family relationships. He had become
33:42
Speaker 2: accustomed to coffee and bagels every morning with his partner,
33:46
Speaker 2: and they enjoyed life together. And now, admittedly it's not
33:52
Speaker 2: for everyone. I'm not trying to get anybody married, but
33:59
Speaker 2: there's something out A fresh romance gives you a little zip,
34:04
Speaker 2: little vigor. Sometime Cynthia and I will lead a cruise
34:12
Speaker 2: or a tour to some part of the world, and
34:15
Speaker 2: it's always fun to meet new people. Invariably, there are
34:20
Speaker 2: some newlyweds whom we would never guess to be newlyweds
34:25
Speaker 2: because they both white hair. Well, she probably doesn't have
34:28
Speaker 2: white hair, but it could be white if she chose
34:33
Speaker 2: to make it that color. Anyway, they're both getting up
34:38
Speaker 2: in years, and I gotta correct them. Sometimes they're back
34:41
Speaker 2: in a back row smooching up a storm as I'm
34:44
Speaker 2: trying to teach the Bible down front. There's something youthful
34:48
Speaker 2: and exciting and romantic about it. So God had some surprises.
34:56
Speaker 2: He probably thought they're going to sit around the front
34:58
Speaker 2: porch and Tissa dogs said up, hang out. One day
35:03
Speaker 2: she says to him, Hey, I'm gonna have a baby,
35:11
Speaker 2: and she a few months later says, hey, I'm gonna
35:15
Speaker 2: have another baby. So the second family is described for
35:20
Speaker 2: us in verse two names you can't pronounce. But here
35:25
Speaker 2: they are six more kids, all boys. How good is that?
35:37
Speaker 2: I've done the math, fifty four months of pregnancies. Don't
35:42
Speaker 2: get your calculator out. I've already checked. But if you
35:48
Speaker 2: they didn't have them back to back to back to
35:49
Speaker 2: back to back, they'd have a little bit of time
35:52
Speaker 2: in between. So let's say three months in between. You
35:55
Speaker 2: gotta add fifteen more months to all those other four months.
36:00
Speaker 2: Or let's say they waited six months in between. More
36:04
Speaker 2: likely then you got to add well, fifty four months
36:10
Speaker 2: of pregnancies and thirty months in betweens, and you've got
36:15
Speaker 2: seven years eighty four months. He's busy changing diapers, teaching
36:22
Speaker 2: them to walk partty training these boys? How fun was that?
36:28
Speaker 2: How old is Abraham? Well he's about one hundred and
36:30
Speaker 2: forty forty five to start with, You wonder how Abraham
36:39
Speaker 2: stayed young? Think about it, teaching six boys to drive
36:48
Speaker 2: a cart with six horses, not run off in the ditch?
36:56
Speaker 2: Who uh, play together without killing each other? And I
37:06
Speaker 2: mean really, potty training him is enough to drive him
37:08
Speaker 2: to drink. I mean, the guy's got six kids and
37:12
Speaker 2: he's got to work through all of that. You say, well, Chuck,
37:15
Speaker 2: come on, well what do you think Verse two means
37:18
Speaker 2: you think they had babies poop and they're all come
37:21
Speaker 2: fully formed. I mean they're just little running those kids
37:26
Speaker 2: that don't have any custom, don't have any manners, don't
37:29
Speaker 2: have any self control, and they need parrots and Soacatura
37:32
Speaker 2: and Abraham roll up their sleeves and take on that responsibility.
37:40
Speaker 2: I love it gives a little bit about the result
37:43
Speaker 2: of their lives. Is their life went on, and Abraham
37:46
Speaker 2: watches with joy, this whole second family emerge. You say, man,
37:53
Speaker 2: I would never want that. Well, I don't care what
37:56
Speaker 2: you would want. It's what Abraham did. That's what's important,
38:01
Speaker 2: which could make you think maybe God has a future
38:05
Speaker 2: for me. Now. I don't know that I want six kids,
38:11
Speaker 2: but you don't call that shot either. My mother told
38:17
Speaker 2: a story I love it about my dad. She said,
38:21
Speaker 2: we were visiting your grandmother. I never knew where she
38:24
Speaker 2: died before I was born. But my mother had my brother.
38:30
Speaker 2: They were married in October, and then she had him
38:33
Speaker 2: by the following August. It works out, It works out,
38:39
Speaker 2: but she obviously got pregnant on a honeymoon. And then
38:42
Speaker 2: thirteen months later she has my sister. And then along
38:50
Speaker 2: here I am in the womb, and she's pregnant for
38:53
Speaker 2: the third time. So they visit my dad's mother, who
38:56
Speaker 2: must have been a real pistol too, about four feet five,
39:02
Speaker 2: probably weighing ninety pounds, dripping wet. She said. She looked
39:07
Speaker 2: at my mother waddling along with me and the two
39:10
Speaker 2: kids run around diapers. She says, Earl, come here, come here, son.
39:17
Speaker 2: My dad stood about six one. Yes, ma'am. The Bible
39:23
Speaker 2: says to be fruitful and multiplying, replenish the earth, earl.
39:27
Speaker 2: God never meant for one woman to do it all.
39:32
Speaker 2: Don't go there. So maybe your kids come back to
39:38
Speaker 2: back to back to back. Maybe they come spread out.
39:43
Speaker 2: He's got six kids, so guess what. He stays engaged.
39:50
Speaker 2: He's involved in their lives. Of course he doesn't use
39:55
Speaker 2: age as an excuse. Oh, you take him to soccer
40:00
Speaker 2: front porch and teach the dog to sit up. I'm
40:04
Speaker 2: just gonna hang out here. Nope. Look at the generosity.
40:09
Speaker 2: I love this now. Abraham gave all that he had
40:13
Speaker 2: to Isaac. You know what, Abraham's still living. That's not
40:21
Speaker 2: a will that transpired when he died. That's while he's alive.
40:28
Speaker 2: He's not through the sons of his concubines. Abraham also
40:33
Speaker 2: gave gifts. Look at this, while he was still living,
40:40
Speaker 2: sent them away from his son Isaac eastward to the
40:43
Speaker 2: land of the East. How smart, How right? There's an
40:51
Speaker 2: old saying, do your giving while you're living. Then you're
40:54
Speaker 2: knowing where it's going you do your giving. When it's later,
40:58
Speaker 2: you don't know what they're going to do with it.
41:00
Speaker 2: Some shyster lawyer gets a hold of it, some bad plan.
41:03
Speaker 2: Forget it. If you're an attorney taking no offense to that,
41:06
Speaker 2: you know what I mean. There are some good attorneys.
41:09
Speaker 2: Both of you are here today. I realized it's a joke.
41:13
Speaker 2: It's just a joke. Okay, relax, I'm gonna show you
41:19
Speaker 2: a verse most of you have never thought about. Okay,
41:25
Speaker 2: that'll be challenging enough to make you turn Second Corinthians twelve. Okay,
41:31
Speaker 2: second Corinthian, not first Second Corinthians twelve tucked away toward
41:37
Speaker 2: the end of the book of the letter. We're gonna
41:42
Speaker 2: read some interesting words about doing your giving while you're living. Okay,
41:55
Speaker 2: Before I read that verse for you, I want to
42:00
Speaker 2: get a little more personal. Do you have a will?
42:06
Speaker 2: Is it an order? Come on now, part of being
42:11
Speaker 2: a responsible adult. Do you have a will? Is your
42:16
Speaker 2: in fact? In fact? Is your entire estate spelled out
42:21
Speaker 2: right there in writing, signs sealed official? Have you been
42:30
Speaker 2: responsible in purchasing sufficient insurance given the unpredictability of the future,
42:38
Speaker 2: or you're just gonna let your family work it out.
42:45
Speaker 2: Here's another. Are you enjoying releasing your wealth while you're
42:50
Speaker 2: still alive like Abraham did? Have you stopped to think
42:55
Speaker 2: how much the government will take if you don't do
42:57
Speaker 2: your business right? Come on, it's a biblical principle that
43:06
Speaker 2: we give to our children and their needs. They don't
43:12
Speaker 2: give to us Sewo Corinthians twelve, verse fourteen. Here it
43:18
Speaker 2: is watch closely here for this third time, I am
43:23
Speaker 2: ready to come to you, and I will not be
43:24
Speaker 2: a burden to you, for I do not seek what
43:27
Speaker 2: is yours but you. He's writing about an offering they
43:30
Speaker 2: said they would give they haven't finished. He's saying, I'm
43:33
Speaker 2: not trying to rip you off. I just want you
43:35
Speaker 2: to finish the offering. Get it finished. When I'm there,
43:37
Speaker 2: I'll pick it up and be on my way. It's
43:39
Speaker 2: for your benefit. Look at the last part of the verse.
43:42
Speaker 2: Second is twelve fourteen b for children are not responsible
43:47
Speaker 2: to save up for their parents, the parents for their children.
43:54
Speaker 2: There it is I could read it to you in
43:57
Speaker 2: the Greek and reads the same way, means exactly what
44:01
Speaker 2: it says. The message renders it children shouldn't have to
44:08
Speaker 2: look out for their parents, parents look out for the children.
44:15
Speaker 2: I've heard parents make comments like, you know, I've worked
44:18
Speaker 2: all my life, and now that I got him out
44:20
Speaker 2: of the house said, this is for us. I'm spending
44:23
Speaker 2: my kid's inheritance. Wait, wait a minute, you proud of that?
44:32
Speaker 2: That honor God? Is that what he would have you do?
44:34
Speaker 2: If it is, he doesn't really mean what he says
44:37
Speaker 2: in verse fourteen. The principle that is not being promoted
44:45
Speaker 2: in this generation has resulted in very selfish aging parents
44:54
Speaker 2: who plan to spend their wealth on themselves. You say, well,
44:56
Speaker 2: I won't have any wealth. Well, compared to a third
44:58
Speaker 2: world you're very wealthy. You and I both are, so
45:04
Speaker 2: we need to think about this. Parents who fail to
45:08
Speaker 2: think ahead find that there's an awkward reversal in roles
45:13
Speaker 2: where the child almost has to be the parent to
45:17
Speaker 2: the parent. I know there are insinuating circumstances. I know
45:21
Speaker 2: that sickness enters in Please don't write me. I'm fully
45:25
Speaker 2: aware of that. I know that. But in more cases
45:29
Speaker 2: than not, we parents are well able to help with
45:33
Speaker 2: the generosity of our gifts to our children. I'll unveil
45:38
Speaker 2: something I don't normally talk about, but Sithy and I've
45:40
Speaker 2: determined that we will help all of our grandchildren get
45:44
Speaker 2: an advanced education. It's our commitment to their parents and
45:49
Speaker 2: to the grandchildren. Not only does it help them in
45:52
Speaker 2: their very real need, it endears them to their grandparents.
45:57
Speaker 2: It's wonderful our relationship we have with grandchildren. The only
46:01
Speaker 2: reason I announced that is to give you an idea.
46:04
Speaker 2: We want to do it while we're living. I want
46:07
Speaker 2: to be there when they graduate. I want to be
46:09
Speaker 2: in the commencement ceremony and watch my granddaughter or grandson
46:13
Speaker 2: walk across the stage and take that diploma, knowing I
46:17
Speaker 2: invested in that because an education goes with them forever.
46:22
Speaker 2: What a simple plan. We've worked with a financial advisor,
46:27
Speaker 2: and I'll be honest with you. That financial advisor looked
46:30
Speaker 2: at what we wanted to do and he said, I've
46:33
Speaker 2: never seen anything like this. Really, why not? Many of
46:40
Speaker 2: you have far more than we'll ever have, But what
46:43
Speaker 2: are you doing with it? You're going to take it
46:46
Speaker 2: with you to the casket. I've never seen any money
46:51
Speaker 2: in any hands in the casket. They're always open and
46:54
Speaker 2: they're always empty. And that money then is going to
47:01
Speaker 2: go somewhere else. If you don't do your giving while
47:05
Speaker 2: you're living. Abraham chose to do that. By the way,
47:10
Speaker 2: don't be afraid of being generous. Don't be that suspicious.
47:16
Speaker 2: Let your generosity run its course. God will be honored
47:21
Speaker 2: in your giving. Whatever it may be, in whatever way
47:24
Speaker 2: you wish.
47:24
Speaker 1: To do it.
47:25
Speaker 2: You choose the way, just make sure it's marked by generosity. Okay,
47:31
Speaker 2: we're back here to Abraham. In Genesis twenty five. He
47:34
Speaker 2: gave that to Isaac, and he'd already given some d Ishmael.
47:37
Speaker 2: He now gives to the others that are a part
47:40
Speaker 2: of his life. And now look, I love the ending
47:44
Speaker 2: here at verse seven down to verse ten. I love
47:46
Speaker 2: the way it reads. These are all the years of Abraham,
47:51
Speaker 2: of Abraham's life that he lived, one hundred and seventy five.
47:55
Speaker 2: He lived all of those years. He didn't die thirty
47:59
Speaker 2: years or earlier and was buried. Now. He lived all
48:03
Speaker 2: one hundred and seventy five years. Read on, Abraham breathed
48:07
Speaker 2: his last died in a ripe old age, an old man.
48:13
Speaker 2: Look at the word satisfied with life. How many people
48:21
Speaker 2: could you say that?
48:22
Speaker 1: Up?
48:24
Speaker 2: He died with a smile. He was well. The Hebrew
48:30
Speaker 2: word is Sava sah b aa Savah, and it means
48:35
Speaker 2: to be full, to be full of years, to be
48:40
Speaker 2: full of satisfaction. I mean his heart beat faster when
48:45
Speaker 2: the grandkids came around, and the kids were there, and
48:49
Speaker 2: he looked into their eyes, realizing, I've helped you out.
48:53
Speaker 2: Now you've got a little launch pad. You can make
48:56
Speaker 2: it from here. You do this with your kids, and
49:03
Speaker 2: look how touching this ending is breathed, his last satisfied
49:10
Speaker 2: with life was gathered to his people. That beautiful. For
49:16
Speaker 2: the first time now in a long time, he saw
49:18
Speaker 2: Sarah as he comes into the presence of the Lord.
49:24
Speaker 2: See his body is buried, but his soul is taken
49:27
Speaker 2: and will await the final resurrection. Remember we talked about
49:30
Speaker 2: that earlier. Then his sons Isaac and Ishmael buried him
49:35
Speaker 2: in the cave of Macpeela. Don't you know they were
49:38
Speaker 2: proud of him. Don't you know there was no shame.
49:42
Speaker 2: They talked about it, They rehearsed his life. They smiled
49:48
Speaker 2: as they shared their stories. The field which Abraham purchased
49:54
Speaker 2: from the sons of Death. There Abraham was buried with Sarah,
49:59
Speaker 2: his wife. I have one simple response, what a way
50:03
Speaker 2: to go. What a way to go. Don't cry for Abraham,
50:10
Speaker 2: don't mourn his death. Rejoice in his life. Look at
50:15
Speaker 2: what he made of it, Look how he used it.
50:20
Speaker 2: It's marvelous now. That was then, and that was Abraham.
50:24
Speaker 2: This is now, This is you. You and I live
50:27
Speaker 2: today for what we have before us. So let me
50:31
Speaker 2: give you a couple of secrets on finishing well. A
50:36
Speaker 2: couple of things I'm learning in my few years on
50:40
Speaker 2: this earth. One has to do with being faithful. The
50:43
Speaker 2: other has to do with being diligent. First, being faithful,
50:49
Speaker 2: to remember that each day offers opportunities for staying young
50:55
Speaker 2: at heart. Each day offers opportunities for staying young at heart.
51:05
Speaker 2: Among them choices, how about a choice of your attitude
51:09
Speaker 2: every morning. You make that choice today, I will be positive.
51:14
Speaker 2: I will look for the good things. I will be
51:16
Speaker 2: excited about what this day brings. I will anticipate some
51:21
Speaker 2: surprises along the way. Second would be a choice of
51:24
Speaker 2: your friends, your circle of friends. If they are negative,
51:27
Speaker 2: you're gonna become negative. If they are selfish, you're gonna
51:31
Speaker 2: become selfish. If they're tight, watch, you're gonna be a
51:34
Speaker 2: tight Wand if their world revolves around themselves, yours will
51:39
Speaker 2: to choose friends that lift your spirit, your activities, and
51:44
Speaker 2: your involvements. I know you can't do all that you
51:47
Speaker 2: were able to do when you get up in years.
51:50
Speaker 2: That's understandable. In that exam with Cooper, he wanted me
51:55
Speaker 2: to get in certain positions and my response was, you're kidding,
52:00
Speaker 2: You're really kidding. No, and he would do it. I'd go, yeah, thanks,
52:04
Speaker 2: and that's great. Some things you can't do that you
52:09
Speaker 2: used to be able to do, that's all right. Another
52:12
Speaker 2: is your activities, your involvements, your cultivation of healthy habits,
52:19
Speaker 2: staying in touch with the music of our day and
52:21
Speaker 2: the times in which we live, Attending the symphony, going
52:25
Speaker 2: to concerts, being a part of the celebrations of life.
52:30
Speaker 2: Less television, more books. You will never ever mature watching television.
52:38
Speaker 2: It has nothing to offer that will truly truly change
52:42
Speaker 2: your life. Books are full of information that will transform me.
52:46
Speaker 2: How many books have you read this year? How many
52:49
Speaker 2: did you read last year? People can tell me the
52:52
Speaker 2: serials they watch on television more readily than they can
52:56
Speaker 2: tell me a book they read, even in a year's time.
53:00
Speaker 2: Should always be a book handy here and if you're
53:03
Speaker 2: there a book handy right there, so you're readily into
53:06
Speaker 2: them reading them. It makes you a person of depth.
53:13
Speaker 2: Less food and more nourishment. How valuable is that? Less
53:17
Speaker 2: sitting around, more exercise. You say, well, Jock, can't move
53:23
Speaker 2: like I used to? Can you walk? Try walking? That's
53:28
Speaker 2: what I do. Just walk now. It doesn't mean you
53:32
Speaker 2: kind of saunter along. Walk, Get out there and walk.
53:40
Speaker 2: I like the words of Satchel. Page six Rules for
53:44
Speaker 2: staying You know Satul page you baseball fans know. He's
53:48
Speaker 2: the old venerable baseball star of yesteryear. He gives six
53:52
Speaker 2: rules for staying young. He's a great. Number one. Avoid
53:57
Speaker 2: fried meats, which angry up the blood. Oh that's not
54:01
Speaker 2: going to go over in the South, I'll tell you
54:03
Speaker 2: they fry everything. Number two. If your stomach disputes, you,
54:08
Speaker 2: lie down and pacify it with cool thoughts. They good.
54:14
Speaker 2: Number three, keep the juices flowing by jangling around gently
54:19
Speaker 2: as you move, jangling around. Every once in a while,
54:26
Speaker 2: I'll come towards Cynthia jangling around. Hey, how you doing?
54:36
Speaker 2: That's all you need to know. Number four. Number four
54:43
Speaker 2: go very gently on the vices, such as carrying on
54:47
Speaker 2: in society. The social Ramble eight RESTful? Will you behave
54:52
Speaker 2: yourself morally as you get older? Will you stay away
54:56
Speaker 2: from porn sites on the internet. Many of those who
55:04
Speaker 2: view the porn sites I hear and I read about
55:06
Speaker 2: are aging men and women. What is that about? That's filth?
55:15
Speaker 2: Stay away from those vices. Number five Avoid running at
55:20
Speaker 2: all times. I like that. When I do my walk
55:26
Speaker 2: in the neighborhood, there's a young woman that runs. She's
55:30
Speaker 2: so thin, she looks like a zipper. I can hear
55:35
Speaker 2: her cuming right by me. Not that I'm watching her
55:41
Speaker 2: or anything, but it's like it's like being caught in
55:44
Speaker 2: a little windstorm. I want to go. Why you could walk?
55:53
Speaker 2: Number six, don't look back, somebody might be gaining on you.
55:58
Speaker 2: I like that one. That's good. Hey, stay at it,
56:05
Speaker 2: stay at life, Stay at life. Everybody around you wants
56:13
Speaker 2: you to. And your family doesn't know how to say
56:16
Speaker 2: this to you, so they asked me to say something
56:18
Speaker 2: about it today, so I'm doing it. We all admire
56:22
Speaker 2: Babe Ruth. Babe Ruth is what he's a slugger. I mean,
56:26
Speaker 2: in his day, he was the home run hitter of
56:29
Speaker 2: the world, the star for the Yankees. And what makes
56:33
Speaker 2: it interesting is that Babe Ruth home run king seven
56:38
Speaker 2: hundred and fourteen homers in his career, but very few
56:43
Speaker 2: people realize he struck out more than any other baseball
56:47
Speaker 2: player in the history of the game. Thirteen hundred and
56:50
Speaker 2: thirty times struck out. But you know what, you remember
57:00
Speaker 2: he hit those homers. His words, what's the secret of
57:07
Speaker 2: your success? I quote, I just keep going up there,
57:12
Speaker 2: and I just keep swinging at them every day, men
57:17
Speaker 2: and women. I just keep swinging at it every day.
57:23
Speaker 2: When it's my time to get in that study, put
57:27
Speaker 2: my bottom in my seat, and sit there at that
57:30
Speaker 2: desk to study. I go at it as if it's
57:33
Speaker 2: the most important work of my entire life. That's my job,
57:38
Speaker 2: it's my calling. You deserve nothing less in return. How
57:47
Speaker 2: wonderful it is when we can see a life like
57:50
Speaker 2: Abraham who comes to the end satisfied. Satisfied, all right.
57:58
Speaker 2: That's number one. Being faithful to remember that everyday opportunities
58:03
Speaker 2: come for staying young. Get hard, Okay. The second secret
58:08
Speaker 2: being diligent to refuse to give up right to the
58:16
Speaker 2: very end. Determine that you will never stop living until
58:23
Speaker 2: they put a mirror under your nose and there's no frost,
58:28
Speaker 2: no bread, and you're gone. Don't quit. People who quit
58:37
Speaker 2: become statistics that are really not very exciting. Back to
58:44
Speaker 2: Satchel page, I got a great question to end with.
58:49
Speaker 2: He's the one who said, how old would you be
58:53
Speaker 2: if you didn't know how old you were? Not a
58:57
Speaker 2: good question? How old would you be if you didn't
59:02
Speaker 2: know how old you were? For whatever it's worth, let
59:08
Speaker 2: me tell you something now, for all the money in
59:11
Speaker 2: the world, would I be any other age but this age?
59:15
Speaker 2: I love it? Man. I get away with stuff I
59:19
Speaker 2: could have never gotten away with when I was younger.
59:27
Speaker 2: I like going to the grocery store, and when I
59:28
Speaker 2: finished shopping, they take all this out to the young
59:31
Speaker 2: guy that sacks and grocery says, you'd help get out
59:34
Speaker 2: to the car, And I said, you want me to
59:35
Speaker 2: carry you? No, sir, I said, no, I don't any help,
59:40
Speaker 2: but I thank you. I'll carry it. That's why they
59:44
Speaker 2: make these carts. You know I'd make it. So can you.
59:51
Speaker 2: You may live alone, Your future may not seem that bright.
59:55
Speaker 2: Your family may have even turned against you. You may
59:58
Speaker 2: not have that greater marriage. I understand. I'm sorry that's true.
1:00:03
Speaker 2: If it is, maybe your kids don't respect you, Maybe
1:00:07
Speaker 2: those people where you worked have forgotten you. You may
1:00:10
Speaker 2: have once been on the speed dial of those who
1:00:12
Speaker 2: wanted somebody to speak at a gathering, and your phone
1:00:15
Speaker 2: doesn't ring anymore. You're still alive, You still have a
1:00:23
Speaker 2: future and a hope. And when it's over. Trust me,
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Speaker 2: God has no trouble saying, come on, you're not going
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Speaker 2: to take his last walk together till then stay at it. Lord.
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Speaker 2: Some of us need to hear this more than others.
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Speaker 2: We realize that we're in a strange era where we
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Speaker 2: expect somebody else to do something for us. Stupid concept
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Speaker 2: that the government takes care of us, or that we
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Speaker 2: lean on somebody else to do what we ought to
1:01:08
Speaker 2: be doing for ourselves. How valuable it is that we
1:01:12
Speaker 2: live responsible lives. Deliver us from the self pity of
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Speaker 2: our day and all the bad news and all the
1:01:24
Speaker 2: laziness and lethargy that accompanies so many beyond the age
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Speaker 2: of fifty. A tragic raise up from this message a
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Speaker 2: body of men and women who take life by the
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Speaker 2: throat and live it to the full.
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Speaker 1: Use.
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Speaker 2: Models like we've heard about today remind us that we're
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Speaker 2: only as old as we think. And I especially ask
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Speaker 2: you to remind us of the importance of staying generous.
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Speaker 2: May we hold all the things you've provided for us
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Speaker 2: very very loosely. May we be quick to give and
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Speaker 2: slow to keep count or watching others awaken us each
1:02:23
Speaker 2: day with the joy of realization that this is a
1:02:27
Speaker 2: new day planned by the Living God for our good
1:02:33
Speaker 2: and for his glory. Use this message in a special way,
1:02:39
Speaker 2: not just for the older, but for younger as well,
1:02:44
Speaker 2: and remind us Lord that your plan for us is
1:02:48
Speaker 2: is filled with surprises, and they're all for your purpose
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Speaker 2: and glory. We pray this our Father, in the matchless
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Speaker 2: name of Jesus, who died at age thirty three, having
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Speaker 2: lived every day to the fullest. In his name, we
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Speaker 2: pray everybody said amen.
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Speaker 3: The preceding message, Won A Way to Go was copyrighted
1:03:19
Speaker 3: in twenty thirteen and twenty fourteen, and the sound recording
1:03:22
Speaker 3: was copyrighted in twenty fourteen by Charles R. Swindall, Inc.
1:03:27
Speaker 3: All rights are reserved worldwide. Duplication of copyrighted material for
1:03:32
Speaker 3: commercial use is strictly prohibited. In the preceding message, Charles
1:03:37
Speaker 3: Rswindall Inc. Is grateful to Stonebrier Community Church for permission
1:03:42
Speaker 3: to use their twenty thirteen performance of Into Jerusalem. Words
1:03:47
Speaker 3: by Susan K. Fair, music by a Stephen Taranto arrangement
1:03:52
Speaker 3: copyrighted in nineteen ninety six by Chorister's Guild