The Virtue of Keeping At It
So I was going to my favorite computer store a while ago and I watched an interesting sight. I was stopped at a stop light and watched as a 17-year cicada came flying along just in front of me going perpendicular to my vehicle. There was a black on black vehicle in the lane next to me. The cicada slammed into the side of the black car and dropped to the ground. Then he got up and slammed into the car again. I watched as the cicada slammed into that car again and again, probably 10 times in all - going down the side of the black car until he reached the front where he was able to keep going in the direction he started. Funny at the time, but amazing as I realized there was just nothing that was going to alter the cicadas direction.
You may think that this is just a dumb cicada unable to take no for an answer, but it got me to thinking about my own life and how keeping at it was a valuable lesson that I learned. I am reminded of Proverbs 3:3-4, "Do not let kindness and truth leave you; Bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart, so you will find favor and good repute in the sight of God and man." The word Truth here is emeth which means firmness, faithfulness, truth. Strongs Concordance says "assuredly, establishment, faithful, right, sure, true, verity." We can use the term dependability - that is something you can sink your teeth into.
Dependability - think about it. All your working life, if you have a good work ethic, revolves around dependability. Can your boss rely on you to complete something? Or does he have to keep looking over your shoulder to make sure you are completing a task you have been given. It is imperative that the same dependability you exhibited in work falls over to retirement. Your word should be your bond - it also implies grit and determination, like the cicada above, to complete the task ahead. That alone should make us appreciative of being able to retire and focus on things that have been left aside during our time when we worked. Retirement is a transition to something different, but many of the same lessons learned before retirement should still be exercised.