Thinking Out Loud, Volume CDX

I heard some prophecies when I was a kid that, to this day, remain unfulfilled, and I believe they will remain so until the end of time. Let me explain why I believe these predictions were a mistake. If they were to come to pass as predicted, it would contradict a biblical curse that was placed on mankind way back in the beginning. Here's what was prophesied: "The days are soon to come when we will live in a push-button society, and the population as a whole will be living lives of luxury, while hard work becomes a thing of the past." Now, here's the curse: "Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat of it all the days of your life. It will produce thorns and thistles for you, and you will eat the plants of the field. By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground, since from it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return." (Genesis 3:17-19 NIV) The forecasters may have been right about the "push-button society," at least to the extent that they could foresee, although there's no way they could've envisioned our modern day devices such as smart phones, lap top computers, iPads, GPS, etc. However, if we're going to make it in this world, someone will have to work for it. I realize that the way I make my living may not be what my ancestors would've called "hard work," but at the end of each day, I'm pooped. Also, both of my kids are now adults, and they are both hard workers. I often spend my Saturdays working in my yard, while my weekdays are spent earning a living, and I can't say I'm any more tired at the end of Saturdays than I am on weekdays. Yes, we may be living in a "push-button" world, but someone has to make those buttons, someone has to sell those buttons, someone has to deliver those buttons, and someone has to spend their days pushing those buttons. In other words, in order to have a "push-button society," mankind still has to work "by the sweat of his brow." Last week I talked about how, when Angie and I were kids, neighboring families would often get together at night and just "sit a spell." Most of us have gotten away from that practice in recent years, mainly because we just don't have the time any more. We're too busy! Yes, times have changed, and our professions have changed, but that old curse that's been around since the beginning of time still stands unscathed. If our gardens are untended, weeds will choke them out, because of the curse. If our kids aren't disciplined, they will go astray and become a menace to society, because of the curse. If we as a society do not work "by the sweat of our brow," our economy will collapse and people will starve, because of the curse. If our homes aren't properly maintained, they will rot and crumble to the ground, because of the curse. The old prophecy about how hard work will disappear in the push-button society is made up of words of man, but if you go back to the third chapter of Genesis, you will find that "the curse" is a proclamation from God. Guess which one is continually being proven true with each passing day! Ladies and gentlemen, hard work is here to stay. We'd do well to accept it and learn to live with it. Oh....you may want to also make sure your kids understand it as well. Preston