PLEASE: NO MORE GOOD OL’ DAYS
by Dr. Wayne Evans

            
    I awoke feeling warmer than usual. What was wrong?  Maybe we just forgot to lower the temperature before we went to bed. I checked the thermostat.  Yes, it was set on 72 degrees but the house was hotter than that.  The air conditioner was not working.  I called for repairs.  Fortunately the technician arrived shortly after lunch. I was hoping we would have cooling by  the end of the day.  The verdict:  the 19 year old compressor could not be repaired. A new one was needed.  We compared the warranty for a whole new unit as opposed to just a new compressor.  I learned the new unit was going to cost more than the first new car I bought.  Finally we decided to buy a new unit.

    If that wasn’t bad enough, I learned the installation could not be done that afternoon.  Since this was on Friday, I was told the installation would begin on Monday and might take up to a day and a half.

    Renee had driven to Lafayette earlier that day to attend a family reunion on Saturday.   She was not having to deal with the hot house, but I wasn’t’ worried. A little heat wouldn’t bother me.  As I got ready for bed I opened the windows and turned on the ceiling fans.  I’m sure I’ve had worse nights, such as the night I had the flu and was throwing up every fifteen minutes.  But this night was one of the worst ten. 

    The next day I decided to spend the weekend with my dad who lives across town. I really enjoyed his hospitality, but when the new AC unit was installed on Tuesday Renee and I were so glad to get back to our house. Those few days of inconvenience reminded me I take so much for granted daily.  When I want the house cooler, I dial the thermostat. In the winter, I turn the dial of the electric blanket. 

    In the “good old days” our family had no air conditioning in our bedrooms. We had an attic fan that pulled in the cool night air as we just “cracked” the window an inch or two.  We not only survived, but sometimes I actually felt cold from the draft.  Now we think we’ll melt if we have to do without air for a few days.  There are other modern things we enjoy. When I want a drink of cold water, I go to the refrigerator. When I want a shower, I turn on a faucet.

    Deuteronomy 6: 10-12 tells us,  When the LORD your God has brought you into the land that he swore to your ancestors, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give you—a land with fine, large cities that you did not build, houses filled with all sorts of goods that you did not fill, hewn cisterns that you did not hew, vineyards and olive groves that you did not plant—and when you have eaten your fill, take care that you do not forget the LORD, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.

    As we celebrate our nation’s independence next week, remember!.  We have so much we don’t deserve. We didn’t earn it all by the sweat of our brow.  The truth is that millions of people work so much harder than most of us, and yet they have so little to show for it.   God has blessed us. Without his grace we too would live in fear as the people of North Korea or Iran.  Let us show our gratitude by making opportunities for others to experience the goodness of God’s gifts as well. 

    Wayne Evans is pastor of Ruston’s Grace United Methodist Church . An archive of his articles is available at www.graceruston.org. Go to the pastor’s page.