It was a glorious day in New England. I took a book and sat outside. It was perfect except I was continually interrupted by birds. A steady stream of finches, sparrows, catbirds, robins and warblers kept interfering with my reading. Those were nice interruptions compared to what followed. Shadows passed over the pages of my book. Looking up I saw two huge vultures circling over me. Really? I’m flattered that I looked appetizing but not today. No, not yet. I am still in the oven. God isn’t done with me. I still have grandchildren’s graduations and weddings to attend. Not that I am not already a great grandfather, but I would like to be a great-grandfather.
Actually God is never done with us. We are like a house whose owner keeps making improvements. It gets grander as the years go by. While we might fall asleep until resurrection morning the improvements will continue from the moment we wake until forever. There are new skills to learn, new talents to develop, new fields of expertise to master and more improvement to our characters. I have a friend who like me is totally musically inept. He contends he will masterfully play the piano his first day in heaven. I think he is so very wrong. Life is about growing. The journey is usually more exciting than the destination. If we just popped onto the Great Wall of China without making the journey think of all the things we would miss along the way.
But for now I have a message for the vultures. “Not yet. Try me again in about twenty years. You can have the body because I am getting a new one.”
Written by Roger Bothwell on May 7, 2014
Spring of Life, PO Box 124, St. Helena, CA 94574
Rogerbothwell.org