JUST LIVIN’ THE DREAM

By Doug Ford, DVM, Production Animal Consultation, & Greg Quakenbush, DVM, Geissler Corp.

Recently, I had the privilege to read a blog wr itten by Karen Lindberg. Karen is the wife and soulmate of my good friend and business partner, Dr. Nels. Most know that two years ago, the Lindberg family was rocked to its core by a tragic firearms accident involving their teenage son, Nash. This season of darkness obviously created intense emotional turmoil, uncertainty, and anxiety. It has been extremely rewarding to watch this young man battle through his physical challenges with hope, endurance, optimism, opportunity, and a grateful spirit. More powerful to see is the family’s universal focus on personal spiritual growth and a victorious outcome in the wake of their unfortunate situation. The family was faced with two choices... bitter or better. They chose the latter.

I have heard it said that the secret to your future is hidden in your daily routine. Success is directly related to your habits. I have witnessed an intense shift in Karen’s daily priorities. Her seed of obedience has opened the door to the Heavenly Father and the Holy Spirit to become fully engaged in this season of testing.

Karen’s awareness of the Holy Spirit’s involvement is evidenced by the precious divine insights she is experiencing and sharing daily on her blog. Her latest revelation came from a statement she overheard a coach sharing with his team in the huddle: “Value the possession, boys.” At face value, the coach was simply saying, “We have the ball. What are we going to do with the time in our possession?”

You attract what you value and everything has a price, whether it is paid by you or someone else. A recent memory involving the legacy of my deceased father was a sobering reminder of the value of the possession. Over time, I realized I have become a bit undisciplined and neglectful in regard to the art of value assessment and appreciation. Thank you, Karen, for reminding me to value the journey, value time, value family, and value life. To celebrate freedom, health, companionship, and the heavenly Father, his Son, and the Holy Spirit. The next time someone asks you how you are doing, please do not respond sarcastically with “oh, just livin’ the dream,” or “just another day in paradise”. Truly value today.

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Value the Possession

By Karen Lindberg

Our kids are involved in sports, and we love following them from event to event. Last night, we were out of town watching the high school basketball games and happened to be in a fairly tight gym. As fate would have it, we sat two rows above the bench. From my seat, I had a bird’s eye view of the bench and a front-row seat to the interactions. I love watching people coach –no matter the level of play. I love to watch coaches and managers motivate their players and navigate the highs and lows of a game. It always intrigues me. I never personally excelled in sports enough to qualify as the coaching type, but I do believe that we all coach every single day. I am constantly watching and learning. Last night the game was a close one. At one point, our team was in the huddle during a time-out and I could hear the coach talking to the players about getting the most out of each possession.

That night on the way home, I kept thinking about the coach’s statement – “value the possession”. Clearly, he was talking about the team's possession of the basketball, but that statement resounded in a deeper personal message. How often am I truly valuing the possession? Obviously, I am not talking about material possessions – I am talking about intangible possessions. Time with the ones you love, memories made with your kids, phone conversations with the friends that you haven’t seen in a while, work relationships, etc. How often do we stop to really value the important things while speeding through our day checking off items on our “to do” list?

Nels takes special time to have lunch with his parents every Monday. Unfortunately, I haven’t shared a meal with my dad since he passed away in 2015. I pray my husband values that possession; someday he will greatly miss that opportunity. I am blessed to spend many weekends traveling with our daughter watching her play volleyball. Joy pours out of her when she competes, and I realize the years of savoring those moments are limited. I hope I always remember to value that possession. I have been blessed with an extra, unpromised, 915 days with Nash since his accident. I hope to never let a moment slide by that I don’t value that possession. Take a minute and soak that in – VALUE THE POSSESSION!!!

Whether it’s the major moments, something as joyful as a trip to a KSU football game with my dearest family and friends, or a simple hug at the end of the day, I hope I always remember to make the most of it. We live in chaotic times filled with more demands than most of us can meet in a day. My wish is for each of us to stop and

VALUE THE POSSESSION – whatever that possession is.

What can you take a minute to value today? Thank you for the lesson, Coach – this mom certainly needed it!

Digging Deeper

I wonder if the coach that Karen overheard during a time-out had any idea that he was sharing a Biblical truth with his players? Moses was likely the first to put the concept of “value the possession” down on paper when he wrote in Psalm 90:12 (NASB):

“So teach us to number our days, That we may present to You a heart of wisdom.”

The Bible has made it quite clear that in the scheme of eternity, our earthly lives are very, very short. James 4:14 (ESV) tells us:

“yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes.”

Psalm 39:4-5 (NLT) also speaks to the brevity of our lifetime:

4“Lord, remind me how brief my time on earth will be. Remind me that my days are numbered–how fleeting my life is.

5You have made my life no longer than the width of my hand. My entire lifetime is just a moment to you; at best, each of us is but a breath.”

The verses above instruct that our lifetime lasts as long as a breath or is as momentary as mist or vapor. The only time that we know we have is right now... today. Tomorrow is not guaranteed and one day we will not be given a tomorrow, at least on this earth. We truly should live as if we are dying because we are.

Psalm 90:12 is only one sentence long, but its essential truth is one of life and death. What Moses links together in this verse is the extreme shortness of our days or “ tim e ” and “ wisdom ” . Wisdom is important because the choices we make in this life will have eternal implications and consequences. Jonathan Edwards (1703-1758), who is considered by many to be America’s greatest pastor/theologian, wrote a masterful sermon series on the “Preciousness of Time”. The summit of his message was the fact that “Your happy or miserable eternity depends upon what you do today.” Pastor John MacArthur takes a more direct approach with his observation that “Time is short; hell is forever. You don’t have time not to be wise...”. This brings us full circle back to Karen’s overheard instruction, “Value the possession.”

Ephesians 5:15-17 (NASB) again emphasizes the difference in the handling of valuable time between wise men and fools:

15 Therefore be careful how you walk, not as unwise men but as wise, 16making the most of your time, because the days are evil. 17 So then do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is

In these verses Paul exposes the unforeseen enemy of our short time on earth. It is not too difficult to look around today and see that we are living in crooked, perverse, and evil times. Evil seeks to destroy anything and everything good, and that ultimately shortens all of our lives. The only way to effectively combat the enemy of our souls is to use your precious time to seek peace with God and eternal life, life without end, through Jesus Christ. If you truly want to understand what “the will of the Lord is”, that can be found by investing time in serious Bible study.

When we come to the end of our days, assuming we are given the opportunity to reflect back on our life, what will be our summation? Hopefully, it will be one of minimal regret. In 2 Timothy 4:7, the apostle Paul lays out a summary of his life that should be the goal for all of us: “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith…”. While this final statement of Paul’s closes the book on his earthly life, you will see that in verse 8 he is looking forward to beginning an entirely new volume... eternity!

Doug Ford, DVM is the owner of Beaver Creek Veterinary Clinic in Brush, Colorado. Doug earned his DVM degree from Colorado State University. Brush, Colorado has been his home since graduating from Colorado State. Doug’s practice has been remarkably diverse over 40 years of veterinary medicine. Dogs, cats, cow/calf, feedlot, two sale barns, and spaying thousands of heifers for grass. The last 20 years of practice has been 50% large western dairies and 50% beef cattle (spaying, cow/calf, and feedlots). In 2005, Doug was given the privilege to become one of the six founding members of PAC. Doug and his wife Jan ranch in their “spare” time. They are also heavily involved in a wetland’s development project on the South Platte River near Snyder, Colorado. Doug’s dad used to say, “Get your grades up. Do you want to grow up to be a ditch digger?” Doug had no idea how much fun it would be to play in the dirt with dozers and track hoes. He feels truly blessed and believes that the best days are yet to come.

Greg Quakenbush, DVM is a 1978 graduate of Colorado State University and spent 16 years in large animal practice in Porterville, California. For 19 years, Dr. Q worked for Zoetis (Pfizer) and was Director of the US Cattle Technical Services team. Since 2013, Dr. Q has worked with the Geissler Corporation assisting in the development of new veterinary diagnostic technologies. Dr. Q enjoys Bible study, shooting sports, flyfishing, and being a part-time farmer growing citrus and nuts in the central valley of California.