The other day I saw a man juggle three very small chainsaws whose blades were running. I immediately put “juggling chainsaws” on my list of things to avoid.
That list, thanks to a Dutch study, is growing longer.
According to that study, drinking coffee or soda, getting angry, jumping when you are surprised or even blowing your nose can significantly increase your chances of having a deadly subarachnoid hemorrhage.
That’s the kind of stroke that kills 10 to 15 percent of folks before they get to a hospital, which takes out 50 percent of the sufferers within a month. Those are just some of the findings put forth by the experts at the University Medical Centre in Utrecht, the Netherlands.
Which, as near as I can tell, leaves me with three choices. I can
1. stop reading news articles;
2. never do any of the things which cause such a stroke;
3. trust in the Lord to take care of me for the unknown hour when I’m going to leave this world.
Since my chances of accomplishing 1 or 2 in that list are pretty much impossible, I’ve opted for number 3 as the best alternative.
I hope you join me in that.
The truth is none of us knows what or when we are going to breathe our last. We certainly aren’t smart enough to identify or avoid all the things that can do us in.
This is why it makes sense for us to embrace and hold fast to the one thing, the One Person who can help us when that day comes.
Only Jesus — the Savior who gave His life so we might have life, who died so those who follow Him might live forever — only Jesus can provide us hope for our day of death and joy for each day we live.
Believing on Jesus …
that’s one thing to make sure stays on my list of things to do.
THE PRAYER: Dear Lord, it is impossible to avoid many of the evils in this world. Since I cannot avoid these evils, help me conquer them. This I ask in Jesus’ Name. Amen.