A By-Product

Tiredness has almost become an obsession in our day and hour. Not long ago, I read that 57% of Americans were tired. Yet a different picture is described not only in the Bible but life itself. Can it be that most tiredness originates in our minds and creeps in through boredom? I, for one, believes it does. Job 5:26 says, “You will come to the grave in full vigor.” Not tired, worn out, or burnt out, but vigor, strength, purpose, and passion.

Consider Noah Webster’s definition of Old, taken from his first dictionary of 1828.

“Old” “Outgrown usefulness, belonging to the past, stale.” When our passions are taped, life, strength, and energy come forth. Thomas Edison worked 18 hour days until he was 65; he only took catnaps and occasional breaks to eat. By the age of 75, he had cut his workday down to 16 hours.
Pablo Picasso produced vast amounts of work each day for most of his life. He painted 18 hours a day, virtually every day until he was in his eighties. When asked why? He said, “I never get tired.” At age 90, he was still producing works of art.

George Muller, the evangelist and director of the Ashley Down Orphanage in Bristol, England ran that great orphanage till he was 80, then told his 60-year-old daughter that it was her time to take the reins, she said, “And what will you do?” His response, “I’m going to Africa to become a missionary.”

We’re all these the exception? I don’t think so. They discovered that energy, vitality, strength, and health are the by-product of passion. Find yours.