The Lord Is Your Shade

 

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Psalm 121:5-6 King James Version

⁵ The Lord is thy keeper:
               the Lord is thy shade upon thy right hand.
⁶ The sun shall not smite thee by day,
               nor the moon by night.

 

Our family moved to Solusi, Southern Rhodesia, in 1954 when I was 12 years old, and living in tropical Africa was a brand-new experience for me. When we arrived, well-meaning folks warned me, “You are red-headed, blue eyed, and pink skinned. You had better wear a hat all the time you are outside, or you’ll have a sunstroke for sure!” A stroke sounded pretty bad to me. My grandfather had died from a stroke just days before we moved, so I started wearing a hat often when I went outside.

The E. B. Jewels, second generation missionaries at Solusi, decided to retire in Southern Rhodesia, now Zimbabwe, so they bought a bungalow on Khami Road west of Bulawayo near Solusi. Their son Laverne and I were good friends, and they invited me over to help whip the neglected yard into shape. We worked all morning in the tropical sun. I wore a hat as per instructions. By lunch time, I started throwing up, had a fever, and was feeling extremely exhausted. Mrs. Jewel was a nurse and suspected I had gotten a sunstroke. She rushed me off to the Bulawayo hospital, and they gave me an IV to combat my dehydration. I felt miserable but recovered readily enough.

In 1967 when Sylvia and I arrived at Ikizu in Tanzania, a degree or so off the equator, I knew that I had better wear a hat. My picture as I left the airplane shows me wearing one. I think that was the last time I wore a hat at Ikizu. For five years, I usually dressed in short pants, a T-shirt, and sandals locally made from an old car tire. I decided that the only time I had gotten a sunstroke was when I wore a hat. I figured out that the hat must have been the cause. I relied on the Lord’s promise that He would be my shade, and that while I was doing His business, He would protect me. He did.

Gracious God, thank You, for being our keeper and shielding us from catastrophes all around us.

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[1] https://www.kingjamesbibleonline.org/Inspirational-Images/large/Psalms_121-5.jpg

By Reason of Strength they be Fourscore

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 Psalm 90:10 Contemporary English Version

¹⁰ We can expect seventy years,
or maybe eighty,
    if we are healthy,
but even our best years
    bring trouble and sorrow.
Suddenly our time is up,
    and we disappear

 

James gives a Christian commentary on that verse: “My friends, consider yourselves fortunate when all kinds of trials come your way, or you know that when your faith succeeds in facing such trials, the result is the ability to endure.”[2]

Today is my 81^st birthday. I have now surpassed the four-score point.  I must confess that as I look back over 81 years, I have had my trouble and sorrow.  On the other hand, I have enjoyed life even in the darkest times.  In the past year my prostate cancer has returned but not with a vengeance yet.  I suffered a stroke, and this prompted my oncologist to say, “Now you are no longer fighting cancer, you are fighting to stay alive. So, stop taking…” and he listed most of my cancer medications.

We had a car accident where a semi pushed us sideways down a freeway ramp at ever increasing speeds. When I took the car in to the body shop a few days later, I was told that my insurance would probably total my car because of the damages—even though I was able to drive it home from the accident. My wife and daughter were in the car, yet none of the three of us suffered any injuries. God has been very good!

Sylvia stated, “Our guardian angels were really looking after us!” To which some wag quipped, “If they were looking after you, why didn’t they prevent you from having an accident?”

We took a lovely trip back east this past summer. We escaped some of the relentless 100º (40ºC) weather and attended Sylvia’s family reunion in North Carolina. At each family reunion we noticed that some of our beloved family members have cashed in on “suddenly our time is up and we disappear.”

However, we are laying concrete plans for a trip to Africa this year and a trip to see a total solar eclipse next year. In the meantime, we may suddenly disappear.

At this point I can only say,

 Thank You, Lord, for a good life and many happy years!

[3]

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[1] https://biblepic.com/psalms/90-10.htm

[2] James 1: 2-3 GNT

[3] https://www.irish-folk-songs.com/three-score-and-ten-lyrics-chords-and-sheet-music.html

A Fruitful Old Age

 

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Psalm 92:14
King James Version
[The righteous] shall still bring forth fruit in old age; they shall be fat and flourishing;

 

I wrote this letter to a friend of mine who suffered a hemorrhagic stroke recently:

Dear John,

    Your stroke both stunned and dismayed me. And this hit you before you even had a chance to retire. However, I don’t believe God is finished with you, I do believe that He is trying to communicate something to you. Dad used to say that in order for God to get things through to him, He sometimes had to hit him across the head with a two-by-four. God waited for three years after I retired to hit me with west Nile virus and recurrent cancer. He wanted me to get my act together and use my retirement to “bring forth fruit” in my old age.

    Now is the time to claim this beautiful promise from Psalm 92: the righteous “shall still bring forth fruit in old age; they shall be fat and flourishing.” In fact, read the whole psalm, and while you’re about it, read Psalm 91. Our God is strong to save and heal!

Before Christ left His disciples, He reassured them: “Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto Myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.” John included this in his gospel for us. 

Christ knew we would go through really trying times, but He is never going to forget any one of us. He promised us in Luke 11: “I say unto you, ‘Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you. For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.’”

You may remember that my friend, Bob, had a nasty stroke some thirty-odd years ago. It left him with a limp, but he recovered well. We are praying that God will heal you, too; and restore you to full health!

Thank You Father, that You never do forget us and promise us a fruitful old age.

 

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[1] https://www.app.com/story/life/home-garden/luxury/mansions/2016/12/29/5-most-incredible-mansions-shore/95870234/