Reece Gardner: Count your blessings

Let's put a bright light of hope in our hearts and minds today, and count our blessings. One of my favorite entertainers in all the world was Red Foley, especially when he sang hymns, such as "Peace In The Valley." with these words, "Oh, the bear will be gentle, and the wolf will be tame, and the lion shall lie down by the lamb, the beast of the wild shall be led by a child, and I'll be changed from this creature that I am." As you know, we're not in this earthly tenure for a long time, folks, so we should try to not take this phase too seriously and to enjoy life more fully.

Life is a gift, so before we say an unkind word we need to think about those who can't speak; Before we complain about the taste of our food, we need to think about those who have nothing to eat; Before we complain about our companion, we need to think of someone who is crying out to God FOR a companion; Today, before we complain about life, we need to think about someone who went too early to Heaven; Before we complain about the distance we have to drive, we need to think of someone who has to walk that distance; And when depressing thoughts tend to get us down, we need to put a smile on our face and think about how blessed we are to still be alive. And we need to develop more humility and less arrogance. Like the arrogant professor who boarded a plane and got a seat beside an elderly man. Mid-flight the professor decided to play a game with the old man to prove that he was intellectually superior. So he turned to the man and said, "Hey, would you like to play a little game with me?" The old gentleman looked at him and said, "Depends. What kind of game?" The professor explained, "Taking turns, we'll ask each other one question at a time. If the other knows the answer, the asker gives him one dollar, and if he doesn't, he gives one dollar to the asker. Want to play?" The professor grinned, knowing that his general knowledge was vastly superior. To his dismay, the old man refused.

Determined to get him to agree, the professor raised the stakes for him. "If I lose, I'll give you two dollars instead of one!" "No." "Five dollars!" "No." Desperate, the professor makes one final offer: "If I lose, I'll give you a hundred dollars, and if you lose you only give me one!" The old man pondered this, then said, "Only if I get to start." The professor agreed, so the old man asked, "What has five heads, forty feet, and lives inside a bucket?" The professor turned the riddle around in his head, trying to find anything that would fit that description. Finally, he gives up. Grumbling, he pulls out his wallet and gives the old man $100.00. He then wastes no time in asking him, "So what has five heads, forty feet, and lives in a bucket?" The old man shrugged and said, "I have no idea. Here's your dollar!"

Now to close with this: A man sitting at a bar after work shares with the bartender why he is looking so stressed, "I'm not sleeping well. I have nightmares about a monster under my bed, and I'm too embarrassed to seek help." A patron nearby overhears this and introduces himself, "I overheard your story and I am a psychiatrist. Maybe I can help. The first thing is you recognize these are only dreams, which is obvious, so I should be able to help you in a few sessions. Here's my card. Give me a call."

A few weeks go by and the same two are at the bar once again after work. The psychiatrist says to the other guy, "How goes the nightmares. I never heard from you so I hope you are doing okay." The other guy says, "Things are great. The bartender helped me." The psychiatrist said, "The bartender helped you? You needed a trained professional to help you. What possibly could a bartender do that a psychiatrist couldn't?" The other guy says, He told me to saw the legs off my bed!" Have a GREAT day!