Inside Out

I have hit a new milestone.  Not one of those great ones.  One of those not so great ones.  My eyes are going.  Now I have been nearsighted for some time.  Diagnosed in the 9th grade when my Spanish teacher, Senora Mean-E, said, "Donato (my temporary Spanish name when I had that dual identity in high school) , if you cannot see that, you need to go see an eye doctor."  If that wasn't bad enough, she continued to probe.  "You go home and tell your parents to line you up an appointment."   The next day- "Did that get you an appt.?"  If front of the WHOLE class, because I was sitting in the very back. I look at the senorita beside me and said, "Por que su problema?" or something like that.  I never quite got the Spanish words that were not the same as the English words but just had that extra o at the end. (or 'a' for you Spanish aces).  Well, I went to the eye doctor and apparently, based on the pictures, asked them for the biggest Sally Jesse Raphael glasses they make.  My cheeks could even see better.   However, now it is spreading.  I am beginning to have trouble reading.   First it was the fine print on the car ads.  Even with blurred newspaper print on the bottom edge of the page, I prided myself on being able to read all the raunchy, lying details  behind the zero down, zero a month ads on Cadillacs.   Then I had to enlarge the font size on my sermons.  Last week I had trouble reading my Bible in the pulpit.  I went to Sam's last month and stuck my head up to those reading eyeglass test lens and all of them was too strong for my little step down into middle age.  I asked my eye doctor what that meant.  I said, "Hey, my eyes are going but  those glasses at Sam's are too strong.... All of them."  He said, "just hang on,  they won't be too strong pretty soon."  I guess it is time to go see him. 
When I preached in revival close to my previous church last week, one of my former members came and said, "I see that gray you're getting."  I said, "I see how ugly you're getting." No, I'm kidding. I said, "See what ya'll done to me." Just another sign.    I thought about all that when I read Paul in 2 Corinthians 5:16-So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day.  Now those of you who are old enough to be falling apart are laughing at my little, new findings of the depraved body, but what do we do?  We renew our inner self daily.    We spend time in the Word, in prayer, and walking and talking with Jesus.  Ain't it cool to see someone old and worn out that still has a zest for the Lord.  Let it be our goal!  Let's work toward it today!