Happy Birthday, Elvis

Thursday, January 8, 2015

And just as each person is destined to die once …. Hebrews 9:27a (NLT)

Today is Elvis Presley’s birthday; he would have been 80! 

At times it still seems surreal to me that it was “merely” 59 years ago the gyrating rocker first appeared on the Ed Sullivan show, and all Americans over 30 figured the world had “gone to Hell in a hand basket”. 

Today Elvis and his show wouldn’t raise an eyebrow!

If you study the artist’s picture of what Elvis would look like today, and look at his 1957 photo, you get an idea of what time can do. 

For anyone who lives 7 decades or more there’s no escaping it; want proof?

                                               

For anyone who lives, we have a date with the future; Elvis seemed larger than life, but that’s the whole thing – it isn’t life creeping-up on you; it’s the other!

The writer to the Hebrews said what we all know; we have an appointment with death.

I’m not really obsessed with that date, but with nearly 70 years of mileage on Russell, it’s hard to turn a deaf ear to the bones complaining.  That “creaking” I hear isn’t the floorboards!

So what can you do about it?

Nothing!

I know…there are whole industries devoted to anti-aging in the way you look and feel.  And there are a bunch of hucksters who want to sell you a bottle of something that is “guaranteed” to hold off Father Time.

The answer is still the same; nothing!  Zero, zilch! 

Fifty is still fifty; sixty is sixty, and the door only swings in one direction.

So what do you do?

You make this day count!

You understand that tomorrow isn’t here, and yesterday is gone; today is like cash in hand – you will spend it.  That makes it vitally important to answer the question about HOW you will spend it – wisely….or what?

God says we should be wise by “redeeming the time”:

  Walk in wisdom toward them that are withouth, redeeming the time.  Let your speech be always with grace, seasoned with salt, that ye may know how ye ought to answer every man.    Colossians 4:5-6 (KJV)

For You Today:

How are you going to account for today? 

Let me encourage you to walk in wisdom – be grace-filled in your actions and words.

You can’t help what the picture of your body will look like 20, 30 or 50 years from now; but you can control the beauty of your soul. 

That is  in your hands!