Friday, August 13, 2021

Reflection - Number Our Days - What I Make of It

Source (book): "Teach Us to Number Our Days", Chapter 21, "What I Make of It", Page 101.
By David Roper, Pastor, and regular and popular writer for Our Daily Bread.


Why, yes, Cephalus
PHOTO: "Why, yes, Cephalus," said I, "and I enjoy talking with the very aged. For to my thinking we have to learn of them as it were from wayfarers who have preceded us on a road on which we too, it may be, must some time fare - what it is like - is it rough and hard-going or easy and pleasant to travel. And so now I would fain (gladly) learn of you what you think of this thing, now that your time has come to it, the thing that the poets call 'the threshold of old age.' Is it a hard part of life to hear, or what report have you to make of it?"
- Socrates in Plato's The Republic

Socrates asks his friend Cephalus, a very old man, "Is [aging] a hard part of life to bear, or what report have you to make of it?"

Cephalus answers that he often gathers with older men whose complaints fill the air. They miss the pleasures of youth and regret them as if they had been robbed of great things. He, however, feels no regret and can't identify with their complaints, for he's enjoying old age.

"There is only one reason for what happens [to us as we age]," he explains. "[It is] not old age, but a man's character. For if they [the aging] are decent, even-tempered people, old age is only moderately troublesome, if not then youth is no less difficult than age is for some people."

In other words, it's not aging that makes life hard to bear, bur unrighteousness, an idea Solomon underscores in his couplet: "The silver-haired head is a crown of glory, if it is found in the way of righteousness." (Proverbs 16:31 NKJV, emphasis added)

It seems, then, that old age can be "good old age," or it can be very bad. It all depends on the direction of one's life. The important thing is not to live long, but to live well. "Of what use is a long life if we amend so little?" wrote Thomas à Kempis. "Alas, a long life often adds to our sins rather than to our virtue."

In my opinion, the first half of life is a piece of cake. The hard part comes later as our strength begins to decline. It's then that the stuff of which we're made begins to show. Folks can mask their bad behavior better they're younger; they have the energy to do so. But when old age sets in, the restraints come off and they may become irascible (easily angered), irritable, testy, and short-tempered (think Grumpy Old Men).

Those traits don't develop simply because people get older. Oh, there are conditions that cause confusion and anxiety as we age, but nothing in aging necessarily impairs us morally. No, I think as we grow older we finally become what we've been becoming all along.

Paul had a good word on the subject: "The one who sows to please his sinful nature [to please himself] . . . will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit . . . will reap eternal life." (Galatians 6:8)

Those who pander (indulge) to self-interest are sowing seeds that will inevitably produce a harvest of misery in themselves and in others. On the other hand, those who love God and others are sowing seeds that yield a harvest of life. Every day they're becoming more alive than ever before.

Old dogs can learn new tricks. There is a very real sense on which we can begin again. We can ask God to fill us again with His goodness. Every day can be a new beginning. We can mature, grow, and become sweeter as the days go by.

Listen:
Lord, at Thy feet my prostrate heart is lying,
Worn with the burden, weary of the way;
The world's proud sunshine on the hills is dying,
And morning's promise fades with parting day.
Yet, in Thy light another morn is breaking,
Of fairer promise and with pledge more true;
And in Thy life a dawn of youth is waking,
Whose bounding pulses shall this heart renew.

Oh, to go back across the years long vanished,
To have the words unsaid, the deeds undone,
The errors cancelled, the deep shadows banished,
In the glad sense of a new life begun.
To be a little child, whose page of story
Is yet undimmed, unblotted by a stain,
And in the sunrise of primeval glory
To know that life has had its start again.

I may go back across the years long vanished,
I may resume my childhood, Lord, in Thee,
When in the shadow of Thy cross are banished
All other shadows that encompass me:
And o'er the road that now is rough and dreary,
This soul, made buoyant by a strength divine,
Shall walk untired, shall run and not be weary,
To bear the blessings that have made Thee mine.

I read the other day that Abraham was circumcised - the visible, outward sign of his covenant love for God - when he was ninety-five years of age. "Better late than never!" I say.


"Why, yes, Cephalus," said I, "and I enjoy talking with the very aged. For to my thinking we have to learn of them as it were from wayfarers who have preceded us on a road on which we too, it may be, must some time fare - what it is like - is it rough and hard-going or easy and pleasant to travel. And so now I would fain (gladly) learn of you what you think of this thing, now that your time has come to it, the thing that the poets call 'the threshold of old age.' Is it a hard part of life to hear, or what report have you to make of it?"
- Socrates in Plato's The Republic


What it is like - is it rough and hard-going or easy and pleasant to travel.
PHOTO: ". . . What it is like - is it rough and hard-going or easy and pleasant to travel. And so now I would fain (gladly) learn of you what you think of this thing, now that your time has come to it, the thing that the poets call 'the threshold of old age.' Is it a hard part of life to hear, or what report have you to make of it?"
Picture posted by iStockphoto
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https://www.istockphoto.com/photo/senior-man-gardening-gm123387145-17368325


Socrates asks his friend Cephalus, a very old man, "Is [aging] a hard part of life to bear, or what report have you to make of it?"

Cephalus answers that he often gathers with older men whose complaints fill the air. They miss the pleasures of youth and regret them as if they had been robbed of great things. He, however, feels no regret and can't identify with their complaints, for he's enjoying old age.


Cephalus answers that he often gathers with older men whose complaints fill the air.
PHOTO: Cephalus answers that he often gathers with older men whose complaints fill the air. They miss the pleasures of youth and regret them as if they had been robbed of great things. He, however, feels no regret and can't identify with their complaints, for he's enjoying old age.
Artwork by Christoffer Wilhelm Eckersberg  (1783–1853) - Socrates and Alcibiades (1813-1816)
Picture posted by zpe.gov.pl - Why Socrates' students preferred being naked
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https://zpe.gov.pl/a/malzenstwo-w-starozytnym-rzymie/DcIdpxYV


"There is only one reason for what happens [to us as we age]," he explains. "[It is] not old age, but a man's character. [102] For if they [the aging] are decent, even-tempered people, old age is only moderately troublesome, if not then youth is no less difficult than age is for some people." [103]


There is only one reason for what happens [to us as we age] - man's character.
PHOTO: "There is only one reason for what happens [to us as we age]," he explains. "[It is] not old age, but a man's character. For if they [the aging] are decent, even-tempered people, old age is only moderately troublesome, if not then youth is no less difficult than age is, for some people."
Picture posted by Öyle mi Alay Komutanım@SekerliD on 18 November 2020 at 06:26 am
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https://pbs.twimg.com/media/EnDxGskXMAI-8I3?format=jpg&name=large
https://twitter.com/sekerlid/status/1328826990066081799


In other words, it's not aging that makes life hard to bear, bur unrighteousness, an idea Solomon underscores in his couplet: "The silver-haired head is a crown of glory, if it is found in the way of righteousness." (Proverbs 16:31 NKJV, emphasis added) [104]

It seems, then, that old age can be "good old age," or it can be very bad. It all depends on the direction of one's life. The important thing is not to live long, but to live well. "Of what use is a long life if we amend so little?" wrote Thomas à Kempis. "Alas, a long life often adds to our sins rather than to our virtue." [105]


It's not aging that makes life hard to bear, bur unrighteousness, an idea of Solomon in his couple
PHOTO: It's not aging that makes life hard to bear, bur unrighteousness, an idea of Solomon in his couplet: "The silver-haired head is a crown of glory, if it is found in the way of righteousness." (Proverbs 16:31 NKJV, emphasis added)
Picture posted by nevsepic.com on 26 February 2013
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https://nevsepic.com.ua/art-i-risovanaya-grafika/page,2,8718-hermitage-high-resolution-picture-56-rabot-1-chast.html


In my opinion, the first half of life is a piece of cake. The hard part comes later as our strength begins to decline. It's then that the stuff of which we're made begins to show. Folks can mask their bad behavior better they're younger; they have the energy to do so. But when old age sets in, the restraints come off and they may become irascible (easily angered), irritable, testy, and short-tempered (think Grumpy Old Men).

Those traits don't develop simply because people get older. Oh, there are conditions that cause confusion and anxiety as we age, but nothing in aging necessarily impairs us morally. No, I think as we grow older we finally become what we've been becoming all along.


Those traits don't develop simply because people get older.
PHOTO: Those traits don't develop simply because people get older. Oh, there are conditions that cause confusion and anxiety as we age, but nothing in aging necessarily impairs us morally. No, I think as we grow older we finally become what we've been becoming all along.
Picture posted by Shutterstock
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https://www.shutterstock.com/zh/image-photo/handsome-senior-man-growing-cucumbers-hothouse-1465736456
 

Paul had a good word on the subject: "The one who sows to please his sinful nature [to please himself] . . . will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit . . . will reap eternal life." (Galatians 6:8) [106]


Paul had a good word on the subject
PHOTO: Paul had a good word on the subject: "The one who sows to please his sinful nature [to please himself] . . . will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit . . . will reap eternal life." (Galatians 6:8)
Painting by Ary Scheffer - Orpheus Mourning the Death of Eurydice
Picture posted by Alamy
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Those who pander (indulge) to self-interest are sowing seeds that will inevitably produce a harvest of misery in themselves and in others. On the other hand, those who love God and others are sowing seeds that yield a harvest of life. Every day they're becoming more alive than ever before.


Those who pander (indulge) to self-interest are sowing seeds that will inevitably produce a harvest of misery in themselves and in others.
PHOTO: Those who pander (indulge) to self-interest are sowing seeds that will inevitably produce a harvest of misery in themselves and in others. On the other hand, those who love God and others are sowing seeds that yield a harvest of life. Every day they're becoming more alive than ever before.
Artwork by Joachim Antonisz Wtewael - Cephalus and Procris (The Death of Procris) (1600)
Picture posted by Wikioo.org - The Encyclopedia of Fine Arts
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgbPYEZBZA73o3sbDe9WvamvelowF3pNR6IfaUDzo_R4HaTsDGmpFBG7qeucb7cvRVZMwe5etLBGFaSUq2XjGGjwkGO8vnP7Yi4uPBXx5H8HgioE6j0K1yEMm3r19gAquWG_4k04nEejI/s2048/Joachim_wtewael-cephalus_and_procris_the_death_of_procris_.Jpg
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Old dogs can learn new tricks. There is a very real sense on which we can begin again. We can ask God to fill us again with His goodness. Every day can be a new beginning. We can mature, grow, and become sweeter as the days go by.

Listen:
Lord, at Thy feet my prostrate heart is lying,
Worn with the burden, weary of the way;
The world's proud sunshine on the hills is dying,
And morning's promise fades with parting day.
Yet, in Thy light another morn is breaking,
Of fairer promise and with pledge more true;
And in Thy life a dawn of youth is waking,
Whose bounding pulses shall this heart renew.

Oh, to go back across the years long vanished,
To have the words unsaid, the deeds undone,
The errors cancelled, the deep shadows banished,
In the glad sense of a new life begun.
To be a little child, whose page of story
Is yet undimmed, unblotted by a stain,
And in the sunrise of primeval glory
To know that life has had its start again.

I may go back across the years long vanished,
I may resume my childhood, Lord, in Thee,
When in the shadow of Thy cross are banished
All other shadows that encompass me:
And o'er the road that now is rough and dreary,
This soul, made buoyant by a strength divine,
Shall walk untired, shall run and not be weary,
To bear the blessings that have made Thee mine. [107]

I read the other day that Abraham was circumcised - the visible, outward sign of his covenant love for God - when he was ninety-five years of age. "Better late than never!" I say.


We can ask God to fill us again with His goodness. Every day can be a new beginning.
Dear Lord
PHOTO: "Dear Lord, we learn that a man’s character causes him to miss the pleasures of youth and regret them as if they had been robbed of great things. If we are decent, even-tempered people, old age is only moderately troublesome, if not then youth is no less difficult than age is for some people.

It's not aging that makes life hard to bear, bur unrighteousness, as according to Solomon. ‘The silver-haired head is a crown of glory, if it is found in the way of righteousness.’

We learn too that old age can be ‘good old age,’ or it can be very bad. It all depends on the direction of one's life. The important thing is not to live long, but to live well.

Lord, life can be a piece of cake until our strength begins to decline. When old age sets in, we are unable to restrain our bad behaviour and may become irascible, irritable, testy, and short-tempered, like Grumpy Old Men.

However, we learn that those traits don't develop simply because people get older. There are conditions that cause confusion and anxiety as we age, but nothing in aging necessarily impairs us morally. As we grow older we finally become what we've been becoming all along.

Lord, help us to be like those who sows to please the Spirit and reap eternal life. Prevent us from being like the one who sows to please his sinful nature but will reap destruction.

Lord, help us not to pander to self-interest as that will inevitably produce a harvest of misery in ourselves and in others. But fill us again with Your goodness. Then every day can be a new beginning. We can mature, grow, and become sweeter as the days go by.

Through Lord Jesus Christ we pray. Amen!"
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Reflection - Number Our Days - What I Make of It
Source (book): "Teach Us to Number Our Days", Chapter 21, "What I Make of It", Page 101.
By David Roper, Pastor, and regular and popular writer for Our Daily Bread.



"Faithful to the end", A Preacher's Exposition of 2 Timothy, @ 2014 by Robert M. Solomon

'Faithful to the end', A Preacher's Exposition of 2 Timothy, @ 2014 by Robert M. Solomon<br>
Reflection - Faithful to the end (Links)
https://veryfatoldman.blogspot.com/2017/06/reflection-faithful-to-end-links.html


"Finding rest for the soul" Responding to Jesus' Invitation in Matthew 11:28-29, © 2016 by Robert M. Solomon

Reflection - Finding rest for the soul (Links)
Reflection - Finding rest for the soul (Links)
https://veryfatoldman.blogspot.com/2018/10/reflection-finding-rest-for-soul-links.html


"God in Pursuit" Lessons from the Book of Jonah, © 2016 by Robert M. Solomon

'Reflection - God in Pursuit (Links) - PART I-III, posted on Saturday, 10 August 2019
Reflection - God in Pursuit (Links) - PART I-III, posted on Saturday, 10 August 2019
https://veryfatoldman.blogspot.com/2019/08/reflection-god-in-pursuit-links-part-i.html


"God in Pursuit" Lessons from the Book of Jonah, © 2016 by Robert M. Solomon

'Reflection - God in Pursuit (Links) - PART IV, posted on Saturday, 10 August 2019
Reflection - God in Pursuit (Links) - PART IV, posted on Saturday, 10 August 2019
https://veryfatoldman.blogspot.com/2019/08/reflection-god-in-pursuit-links-part-iv.html 


"Songs of Christmas", The Stories and Significance of 20 Well-Loved Carols, © 2018 by Robert M. Solomon

Reflection - Songs of Christmas (Links), posted on Friday, 24 April 2020
Reflection - Songs of Christmas (Links), posted on Friday, 24 April 2020
https://veryfatoldman.blogspot.com/2020/04/reflection-songs-of-christmas-links.html
 

"Growing Old Gracefully", Following Jesus to the End, © 2019 by Robert M. Solomon

Reflection - Growing Old Gracefully, Part I - III (Links), posted on Wednesday, 09 December 2020
Reflection - Growing Old Gracefully, Part I - III (Links), posted on Wednesday, 09 December 2020
https://veryfatoldman.blogspot.com/2020/12/reflection-growing-old-gracefully-part.html
 

Reflection - Growing Old Gracefully, Part IV - V (Links), posted on Thursday, 22 April 2021
Reflection - Growing Old Gracefully, Part IV - V (Links), posted on Thursday, 22 April 2021
https://veryfatoldman.blogspot.com/2020/12/reflection-growing-old-gracefully-part_9.html
 


Reference
[1] From "Teach Us to Number Our Days", Copyright © 2008 by David Roper, ISBN 978-981-11-7184-0, Chapter 21, "What I Make of It", Page 101-105.

[102] Socrates' word, here translated character, means "direction" and refers to the trajectory of one's life toward the "Good."

[103] Plato's The Republic, Book I.

[104] Proverbs 16:31 NKJV, emphasis added

[105] Thomas à Kempis, The imitation of Christ, chapter 23.

[106] Galatians 6:8

[107] Henry Durbanville


Links


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