OLD AND COLD! NOT YET! NOT YET! ...
By Wade Martin Hughes, Sr. Kyfingers@aol.com
This is part one of a two part series, Old and Cold! NOT YET!
If you need part two email Kyfingers@aol.com
TEXT:
Revelation 2:4 Nevertheless, I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love.
Joel 2:28 And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out My Spirit upon ALL flesh; and your
sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions...
Acts 2:17 And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of My Spirit upon
ALL flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions,
and your old men shall dream dreams...
Proverbs 27: 17 Iron sharpeneth iron, so a man sharpeneth the countanance of his friend.
INTRODUCTION: Little things matter a whole lot. In 1871 in Chicago, one little lady was milking her little cow. The little jersey cow kicked over a little oil lamp into a little pile of hay. There was a little wind that blew the little fire and the little barn caught on fire. The little fire caught the little house next door on fire, and before they knew it, an area one mile long and three miles long burned and was totally destroyed. The GREAT CHICAGO FIRE OF 1871 was caused by many little things coming together.
1. WHAT IS OLD?
A. What is old?
When I lived in Indiana I was in the third grade.
We would get on the school bus, the high schoolers were in the back of the bus.
We dared not go back in the back of the bus, them OLD high schoolers were old, and
they were mean. 16 appeared old to me.
B. COULD THERE BE YOUTH INSIDE AN OLD PERSON?
Granny Tibbs, in her 80’s was singing and testifing at church one night,
Granny plays the harmonica and harpsichord, she stopped her song and said,
You all see an old woman here, but there is a 16 year old girl trapped inside.
She said, You can’t see her, but she is still there.
Someday she, the 16 year old, will be released forever.
Then she played the song "HOW BEAUTIFUL HEAVEN MUST BE!"
We have an old lady at church, Dana, she is very faithful.
Dana is 92. But she talks about old people? Do you think she realizes she be old?
Dana’s husband died, I had his funeral, it was on Saturday.
Dana was in Sunday School. I was surprised?
I told her we was surprised? She said, What better place to be than in church.
Yesterday, I got 3 sundae’s from McDonald’s and went to Dana’s house yesterday, her, her daughter and
I just sat there and ate ice cream and laughed a lot. For $3 I made 3 people happy and grew a precious
memory.
They have no car, and no ability to get out. They usually go on a little ride with me each week, but this week, it was bad and they didn’t want to get out, I refused to be defeated, I just took them a little time of joy.
C. WHAT IS OLD?
What is old? Losing hope is what old means. There are times I almost lose hope, as I see few trophies
in my case, but who likes to dust... God give us hope.
When we consider the age of a car we also consider how many miles the vehicle has been used.
Well, old is as old does. When man allows life to steal his vision and his dream he is OLD?
When we quit learning we are old? When we pull up a rolling chair in the corner, our effort is busy rocking, yet the effort gets us no where, we are old?
D. I USED TO HEAR DAD SING THE SONG NEVER GROW OLD... I THOUGHT WHAT IS BAD ABOUT
GROWING OLD?
I have heard of a land, on the far away strand, tis a beautiful home of the soul, built by Jesus on high,
where we never shall die, tis a land where we’ll never grow old.
Never grow old, never grow old, in a land where we’ll never grow old.
Never grow old, never grow old, in a land where we’ll never grow old.
WELL, IF YOU GROW AN OLD HEART THE TRAP OF LIFE HAS GOT YOU!
2. IS IT EASIER TO FALL IN LOVE THAN TO STAY IN LOVE? THE RIPPLE EFFECT?
RIPPLE EFFECT. When one small rock breaks the surface, theoretically every molecule in the pond
is effected. Will you have a positive ripple effect! Please clearly identify who the enemy really is?
Mat. 6:33, The main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing!
A. Moses was 80 when he saw the burning bush and took the step of faith to return to Egypt.
At 80 Moses recognized HOLY GROUND and had a personal experience with the great I AM.
B. Caleb at 80 asked for his mountain. When all those of his generation were in the grave,
Caleb and Joshua’s eyes were not dimmed. Caleb’s faith caused him to see and reach beyond the
ability of his age.
C. Abraham went into the local Kmart or Walmart store and purchased some pampers at 100.
The clerk probably asked, is that for a great grandson? Abraham said NO, I AM A FATHER!
Can we afford to retire? Or is God’s plan for us to REFIRE?
D. GUARD LIFE AND YOUR DREAM AND HOPES! Living dog or dead lion?
It is so easy in life to waste precious time and lose the joy in living while walking through menial daily
chores. Many people of God lose all joy in ministry and become overly burdened dealing with peoples’
problems. Why have we been called?
Ecc. 9:4, For to him that is joined to all the living there is hope: for a living dog is better than a dead lion.
Take care of your life ... God will take care of death and what you can’t handle.
We must develop a complete trust in the leadership of God and avoid developing explosive attitudes that
lead to self-destruction.
E. LIFE IS LOOKING FOR OZ?
Garth Brooks was asked about making it in Nashville.
He is a millionaire and had many hit songs, his name and face is known around the world.
A reporter asked him, How does it feel to be a star known in Nashville?
He answered, OZ IS ONLY OZ TO THOSE THAT DON’T LIVE IN OZ!
Often life has a way of wishing to be else where, to dream of being another is to waste who you are.
YOU ARE OLD WHEN YOU WASTE THE OPPORTUNITIES OF TODAY!
3. LIFE HAS A WAY OF GROWING COLD HEARTS, HARD HEARTS
As cold as stone, was not what God intended for His children.
God calls us HIS CHILDREN? Why? Because he desires of us a young heart.
As cold indifference comes ... we must come to the FIRE ON THE ALTAR.
The Cold Within (unknown)
Six humans trapped by happenstance in black and bitter cold.
Each one possessed a stick of wood (or so the story’s told).
Their dying fire, in need of logs, the first woman held hers back,
For on the faces around the fire, she noticed one was black.
The second, looking across the way, saw one not of his church,
And couldn’t bring himself to give the fire his stick of birch.
The poor man sat in tattered clothes, he gave his coat a hitch.
Why should his log be put to use to warm the idle rich?
The rich man just sat back and thought of the wealth he had in store
And how to keep what he had earned from the lazy, shiftless poor.
The black man’s face bespoke revenge as the fire passed from his sight,
For all he saw in his stick of wood was a chance to spite the white.
And the last of this forlorn group did not accept for gain:
Giving only to those who gave was how he played the game.
The logs held tight in deaths’ still cold hands was proof of human sin.
They didn’t die from the cold without, They died from the cold within.
We must love and serve God and others with ALL our hearts, with ALL our soul, with ALL our mind, with
ALL our strength, this is the first command.
4. WHAT CAUSES LIFE TO DESTROY OUR LOVE AND ZEAL SHOULD NOT GROW US INTO THE BITTER,
BUT THE BETTER.
A. Great tests? Great testimonies? Big messes? Big messages?
B. The more fire the greater the value?
This is interesting...
The value of a bar of metal, ... $2.50 put it back in the fire and work with it:
now the same metal is a horse shoe worth $18.00.
Put it back in the fire and work with it: now the same metal can be made into $295.00 worth of needles.
Put it back in the fire and work with it: now the same metal is knife blades worth $1680.00
Put it back in the fire and work with it: now the same metal is worth $125, 500.00 worth of watch springs.
It is the same amount of metal, the difference is the fire has been greater.
C. LIFE HAS A WAY OF CAUSING US TO BE HARD AND INDIFFERENT.
Occasionally one needs to take the boat out of the water to clean the dirt away.
The ship will be slowed and more fuel required to operate with a dirty hull.
The bud must open before fruit can develop.
Tunnel vision will limit our life?
A closed umbrella does very little to keep one dry?
5. I FEEL OLD AND VERY TIRED, I AM GOING TO QUIT!
A. THE TWO FROGS IN THE CREAM.
I love the story of the two frogs that fell in the ten gallon milk bucket. They swam for hours.
The one frog said, "What is the use?" and he gave up and drowned.
The other frog said, I cannot afford to give up.
So the frog kicked and kicked until the cream turned into butter and then he jumped out of the can.
If the two frogs would have kicked together, the cream would have become butter quicker?
Just because some around you see the negative, you cannot afford to quit!
B. Your life is a song, the words and tune --- are your choice.
Your song is sweet, lovely, glad, or it is bitter, angry, and hopeless?
You choose the song and how it will be sung!
Some will laugh, others mourn; some will work, others will pray; one gives up and dies, one runs away,
what will you do?
YOUNG MEN’S MINDS ARE CHANGEABLE, BUT WHEN AN OLD MAN IS CONCERNED HE LOOKS BACK AND
SETS HIS HEART IN CONCRETE.
6. WHY DOES OSCAR THE GROUCH LIVE IN A GARBAGE CAN?
WHAT MAKES A GARBAGE CAN A GARBAGE CAN?
A. There are many kinds of vessels, some to honor, some to dishonor ...
of course the Potter’s hands come in reason, but also the pliability of the clay? The type of clay?
Read Romans 9:21.
B. Thommy Miller wrote me that while working in various restaurants, he saw flour, salt, lettuce, and slaw stored in garbage cans, --- While some garbage cans were stinky and dirty filled with garbage,
some were food sources? What made the difference?
C. God can change the marred clay --- Jeremiah 18:4.
What are your attitudes growing? Many want to sit on the beach and be professional sport’s stars?
This is part one of a a two part series by Wade Martin Hughes, Sr.
Kyfingers@aol.com
