Midweek Encouragement - "Staying Sharp”

“Staying Sharp”

             ^{“With the historical events of this past weekend and the criticism aimed at President Biden during the prior months regarding his alleged mental deterioration, I’m more convinced than ever that my mind is a muscle that needs to be stretched to stay sharp. Our brains need to be prodded and pushed so they perform well. If we allow them to get idle and lazy, those muscles will become pitiful masses of flab in an incredibly brief length of time.}

         ^{What can we do to stretch our minds? What are some good mental exercises that will keep the cobwebs away? Let me encourage you to always be involved in these three activities: read, talk, and write.}

         ^{Read! One day you may be too crippled to move on your own strength or too poor to travel, but between the covers of a book are ideas that are waiting to give you the joy of discovery. Before William Tyndale died and while he was in prison, he asked the governor for a warmer cap, a piece of cloth to patch his leggings, but above all to have his Bible, his grammar book and his dictionary so he could spend time in study.}

         ^{The power of your understanding is magnified through reading. Read wisely. Read widely. Read slowly. Make reading part of your daily schedule because reading attacks the hardening of your mind.}

         ^{Talk! Conversation is the oil that keeps our mental machinery running smoothly. The give-and-take of daily conversation provides the grinding wheel to keep our brains sharp as we get older. And by all means, don’t allow your conversations to be limited to shallow, predictable, obvious topics. Leave the discussion of people and the weather to your local source of news and information. Dig into issues, ideas, controversial topics and things that really matter. Ask and answer “why” and “how” rather than “what” and “when.” Socrates was considered wise, not because he knew all the answers, but because he knew how to ask the right questions.}

         ^{Write! Thoughts unscramble themselves when they pass over the lips and exit through our fingertips. Our brains get more creases when we put down our thoughts on paper or through the keyboard. So, why not start to journal this summer? Before you throw a book at me, hear me out . . . A journal isn’t a diary. A journal doesn’t record what you do. It records what you think. It spells out your ideas, your feelings, your struggles, your discoveries, your dreams. A journal helps you articulate who you are. Who knows? Your memories might make the bestseller list in the year 2030! At least your journal will tell your great grandkids about YOU!}

         ^{I’ll bet your mind is alive and active today! Reading gets those mental juices flowing so you can talk to someone about them. Writing lets you share those thoughts with the next generation! So keep that gray matter between your ears sharp and you won’t ever be accused of being senile or old!}

^{For those of you who will be in worship at the Mt. Laurel Church of God this coming Sunday, July 28, Pastor Dale will be bringing the message from God to you from John 6:1-21.}

^{Pastor Dale}

Pastor Dale (PD) and Pamela his wife are honored to serve the Mt. Laurel Church of God. If this Mid-Week Encouragement has helped you, perhaps it may encourage someone else. Feel free to share this message with anyone you choose. And if you'd like to receive PD's Mid-Week Encouragement, just send an email to (kingdomguy@gmail.com) and I'll accommodate your request.