I have yet another confession to make. I love period-piece miniseries and movies––especially the Victorian era, though I must admit I am drawn more to the posh than the poor. Boring though it may seem, I especially love the evening scenes when they all convene in the drawing room, to read, play whist, take a turn about the room, or listen to someone play the piano.

Recently, I had a somewhat similar experience. No, it was not a grand drawing room, and it wasn’t filled with well-heeled gentlemen and ladies, nor was their a game of whist taking place. BUT, there was a piano and a most amazing young talent, Talon Smith, who performed for about twenty of us in the living room of a very middle-class patron.



As of this writing, Talon is on his way to Warsaw, Poland, to compete in the preliminary rounds of the International Chopin competition. According to the Chopin 2020 competition website, (https://www.chopin.org/2020-competition) Talon was a finalist last year and earned the right to go to Warsaw in April, but then had it put on hold for a year because of Covid. He is an amazing young talent, among what looks to be a slew of talented young musicians, and I was again reminded of all the beauty, talent, diversity, and individuality that God creates.

The beauty of music and the musicians who play it. The beauty of paintings and the artists who create them. The beauty of words, of furniture, of architecture and those who conceive, build, and envision them.

I am struck by the ability of those who heal the human body, those who can fathom the workings of the internet and its technology, and those who can wire my house and fix my plumbing.

And I am in awe at how very different each and every one of us is in looks, thoughts, and talents. There is a lot of talk . . . an inordinate amount of talk . . . about diversity these days. Yes, in this broken world there are cultural and ethnic inequalities that need, and will always need, to be addressed, but I think we should appreciate diversity the way God intended us to . . . as unique individuals, each with something valuable to offer––ourselves included.

Sometimes I think we forget David’s observations in Psalm 139:13-16:

“For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother's womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. . . .Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them.”

I may not be able to play a Chopin Nocturne or draw a straight line or fix my own heater, but I can appreciate those who can, and I can thank and praise God for the unique talents and opportunities He has created and selected just for me and for others. I think we all can.

Photo taken from Chopin.org

I am by no means a biblical scholar, especially in the area of prophecy, but I am told to be aware of the signs of the end times so as to not be deceived (Matthew 24:4).

And although no one knows the hour or the day of Christ’s return (Matt. 24:36-41; I Thes. 5:1-3; 2 Peters 3:10; Rev. 3:3), we always have to remember that each passing day brings his return closer. Yes, I realize I am being Captain Obvious here, but a few things have happened and are happening to ever remind us that that day is getting closer and closer.

“For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever” (I Thes.  4:16-18).

First of all, I am a believer of a pre-tribulation rapture, that God will remove his church before the tribulation begins, saving his followers from the wrath to come. So the question that is always on one’s mind is—how will the world explain away the disappearance of so many people from the earth? (Hopefully, it will be a lot of people.) Good question.

One theory has always been an alien abduction. Yeah right. Like who would believe that? However, UFOs are suddenly back in the news and now with the government’s willingness to share information that they had previously held close to the vest. (See article from the NY Times below if you are interested.) So could alien abduction be plausible to many in the future? Perhaps.

Once the church is raptured, so much more is to happen, too much to discuss here, but these past years have marched us ever closer to social acceptance of the mark of the beast.

“And he causes all, the small and the great, and the rich and the poor, and the free men and the slaves, to be given a mark on their right hand or on their forehead, and he provides that no one will be able to buy or to sell, except the one who has the mark, either the name of the beast or the number of his name” (Revelation 13:16-17).

The technology is already in place; some businesses have already experimented with allowing their coworkers to opt for a chip (in one of those two locations) to purchase in-company; and just this past year, when the mask mandates were being lifted for those vaccinated, one official, when asked how one would know if the person walking through the door was vaccinated, innocently replied something like, “You wouldn’t unless it was marked on their forehead.”

There are many other events, attitudes, and changes in social norms that prove we are hurtling toward those final events which are primarily mentioned in Daniel and Revelation.

For the Christian this can be disheartening, exciting, and mobilizing. Disheartening to see the world moving away from God at an alarming speed; exciting in that the rapture of the church is imminent; but mobilizing in that non-believers will have to live through the tribulation. It is, therefore, important that we share the good news of God’s salvation and rescue now more than ever.

www.nytimes.com/2021/06/03/us/ufos-report.html

Okay. I admit it. I’m getting old–er.

There is a lot of evidence for this besides the calendar. I have more little (and big) aches and pains. I can now pull my back out of alignment by just getting out of bed. My stamina isn’t quite what it used to be. Believe it or not, I get full faster. (I think that should be chalked up as a blessing.) I could list some others but they probably are best left unsaid. But the one that surprises me the most, is my response to heat.


I grew up in heat. The Central Valley is not known for its mild summer climate, and summer tennis programs were run at all times of the day. For some reason the heat didn’t bother me then . . . or in college . . . or even as a young adult. I could play at any time of the day.

I still live in a warm (a Central Valley euphemism for blazing hot) area, but I have discovered my outdoor activity is now reserved for the morning or evenings, and even then, once done, I am wiped out.

Age does that to a person. Though we can still be active, age causes us to modify our activity, reassess our abilities, and seek new challenges. What it doesn’t do, however, is make us unnecessary or useless or forgotten.

A lot of times when we reach an age where we can’t do what we used to do or still want to do, we are afraid we will be deemed useless. Even the Psalmist was afraid of such a thing and begged God to “not cast me off in the time of old age; forsake me not when my strength is spent” (Psalm 71:9).

But we are remembered and we are told to value our gray hair as it is “a crown of glory; it is gained in a righteous life” (Proverbs 16:31), and because of that we have something unique to offer that only comes with age. “Wisdom is with the aged, and understanding in length of days” (Job 12:12).

And so even if our activities have changed over the years, we are reminded that we still have value. We are still important in God’s work: “They [the righteous] still bear fruit in old age; they are ever full of sap and green (Psalm 92:14).

Yes it is true that  “The glory of young men is their strength,” but it is also true that “the splendor of old men is their gray hair” (Proverbs 20:29). In fact, the first part of Titus 2 is Paul instructing Titus about how important the behavior of the older men and women is, for they are to be examples and mentors for younger men and women.

Some of us, like Moses, will live lives full of health and vigor right up to the day God calls us home (Deuteronomy 34:7). Others of us will feel the weight of the years and be physically slowed in our final days.

Regardless, God knows us, remembers us, and wants to still use us just as we are until he takes us home.

After a year of no real communal golf, restrictions are now being lifted, and the ladies club golfing “tournament” season is once again underway––which means the invitationals are back.

Each club can decide what sort of format and scoring it wants to have. The most common is two best balls out of a team of four. However, the first tournament I attended this year, chose a different format––one that reminded me of one of God’s promises, of His grace, and of our responsibility. That format is the Eclectic.

In an eclectic, everyone plays a round of golf on the first day and records her score. The goal on the second day is to improve her score on as many holes as she can. It is rare, extremely rare, that a golfer will improve on every hole, but on the holes that were poorly played the day before, there is hope. A chance to redeem herself, and move closer to a good score.

Such is the Christian life. God doesn’t expect perfection from us the day we turn our life over to Him. Nor does He expect perfection each day. But He does want us to move toward perfection––toward being more Christlike.

Philippians 2:12 tells us to “. . . continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling.” Our salvation is free and immediate when we accept Christ as our savior, but our struggles with sin and our Christlike qualities are daily work. But not work we have to do on our own.

Paul reminds the Philippians the he is “confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus” (Philippians 1:6).

God wants us to reflect Christ. He wants us to move away from sin and to be more righteous, faithful, loving, and godly, and he has sent the Holy Spirit to remind, prod, encourage, and help us in this endeavor.

So let’s not dwell on “poorly played” situations of the day before, but with God’s help, seek to use this day to improve.