Did I ever tell you I used to bowl? Twenty years ago I bowled a couple nights a week and one of those was a very competitive league down in South Omaha at the now torn down Leisure Lanes. I carried a 200 plus average and just missed the holy grail of bowling a 300 game by two pins. Today bowling isn't as big with others or me.
Bowling alleys in those days were notorious for smoke. Since I didn't really do bars or drink much, if smoking has had anything to do with my cancer that's the best I'm gonna come up with. I'm not looking for blame here, rather the thought came up when I remembered the old bowling phrase 'trust is a must or your game is a bust' which refers to throwing a hook ball to within a board or two of the gutter then having it come back for a strike.
I'm relating to that goofy line right now on a completely different level. I'm still pretty queasy from all the chemo and to some degree still headed for the gutter. I'm trying to turn the ship but this isn't really a matter of focus, it's a matter of healing which I'm learning again takes time and patience and trust. Everyday I thank God for a good prognosis which honestly makes trust way easier for me. Not everyone gets such news.
Yet God reminded me this past weekend about the the level of trust everyone of every prognosis, good or bad can have in His promises. In our Gideon breakfast Saturday morning we read in Titus 1 vs 2: 'My message is based on the confidence of eternal life. God who never lies promised this eternal life before the world began.' Can't lie! Hope is ours!
Knowing this helps me appreciate the words of a Ginny Owens song which fits me pretty closely these days:
Cause I'm not who I am
When I took my first step
And I'm clinging to the promise you're not through with me yet
so if all these trials bring me closer to You
Then I will walk through the fire if you want me to.
It may not be the way I have chosen
When you lead me through a world that's not my home
But you never said it would be easy
Only that I'd never go alone
So when the whole world turns against me
and I'm all by myself
And I can't hear you answer my cries for help
I'll remember the suffering your love put you through
And I will go through the valley if you want me to.
An interesting thing about that old bowling league- the secretary was a math teacher at Benson and we had information like no other league. He kept track of scores, developed standard deviations and used them to determine our most consistant and most explosive bowlers. Guess where I ranked- always top 2 or 3 'explosive' - which might sound good at first but really is another way of saying 'inconsistant'! Let's all move to the 'most consistant' list when it comes to trust during our hard times and good times.
Blest Regards to All,
kp
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