OLD AGE
II Kings 13:17-19
"And [Elisha] said [to Joash], 'Open the east window'; and he opened it. Then Elisha said, 'Shoot'; and he shot.....And he said, 'Take the arrows'; so he took them. And he said to the king of Israel, 'Strike the ground'; so he struck three times and stopped. And the man of God was angry with him, and said, 'You should have struck five or six times; then you would have struck Syria till you had destroyed it! But now you will strike Syria only three times.' "
This is perplexing. Elisha gave Joash specific instructions – "open the window; shoot; take the arrows; strike the ground" – and each time Joash did exactly as he was commanded. But there is no record that Elisha told him how many times to strike the ground. Even Elisha's expectations were not precise – "five or six times." How was Joash to know? So where did the anger come from? If Joash had struck the ground 100 times, would Elisha have been satisfied? Perhaps the simple answer is that Elisha was losing it in his old age and was becoming senile. Maybe he forgot that he did not tell Joash all he needed to know. As an "old man," I understand memory loss. Lord, help me in my senior years to not be a crochety old man who gets impatient with others who do not meet my unspoken expectations.
TODAY'S PRINCIPLE: Senior citizens need to have patience with other people who do not meet their expectations.
[end]
Have a "patient" day. Love you.
www.wordpress.com
II Kings 13:17-19
"And [Elisha] said [to Joash], 'Open the east window'; and he opened it. Then Elisha said, 'Shoot'; and he shot.....And he said, 'Take the arrows'; so he took them. And he said to the king of Israel, 'Strike the ground'; so he struck three times and stopped. And the man of God was angry with him, and said, 'You should have struck five or six times; then you would have struck Syria till you had destroyed it! But now you will strike Syria only three times.' "
This is perplexing. Elisha gave Joash specific instructions – "open the window; shoot; take the arrows; strike the ground" – and each time Joash did exactly as he was commanded. But there is no record that Elisha told him how many times to strike the ground. Even Elisha's expectations were not precise – "five or six times." How was Joash to know? So where did the anger come from? If Joash had struck the ground 100 times, would Elisha have been satisfied? Perhaps the simple answer is that Elisha was losing it in his old age and was becoming senile. Maybe he forgot that he did not tell Joash all he needed to know. As an "old man," I understand memory loss. Lord, help me in my senior years to not be a crochety old man who gets impatient with others who do not meet my unspoken expectations.
TODAY'S PRINCIPLE: Senior citizens need to have patience with other people who do not meet their expectations.
[end]
Have a "patient" day. Love you.
www.wordpress.com
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