Mohammad Ali formally Cassius Clay died today at 74 years of age. He has struggled for years with Parkinson’s disease. I watched as a 16 year old when he knocked out Sonny Liston for the heavy weight title the first time he won it. I watched the “thrilla from Manilla” when he fought Smoken Joe Frazier, and also the “rope a dope” in 1974 when he beat George Foreman which no one thought possible. “Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee” I have no clue now who is the heavy weight title holder today. I haven’t watched or kept up with boxing for years. For all he did, his life is over. I wonder where he is now. I wonder what he is thinking, feeling, experiencing now. Some think he is just dirt, nothing else, all that he did and experienced is gone from his self awareness now. It is like it didn’t even happen. I believe that he is very self aware right now. The question is where?  I have no idea what has gone on in his life in the last 20 years, but I do believe the words of the Bible when Jesus says “I am the way, the truth and the life, no one comes to the Father except through me”. Worth thinking about. Eternity is a long time to wish we had thought about it.

When I drive my 1949 Ford F-1 Pickup into the local gas station I pull in front of the pump that sells premium non-ethanol gas. When I give the attendant my credit card he hands me the nozzle and let’s me pump the gas so if any gas gets spilled on my nice paint job I do it, not him. I have been doing a little  tuning on the two stromberg carberators on my Flathead engine. It has been running a little rich so I changed the .045 jets to .042 and it ran much better. I am going to try .040 jets next and see what happens. The whole fuel system is a key part of a car or truck, new or old running well. Same goes for me. I need fuel to run well. Good, healthy food and rest for my physical body. Basic disciplines of the christian life like Bible reading and prayer for my spiritual energy, and key activities to renew my emotional energy or my soul.  This last one is one of the trickier  ones for many to figure out because there are variables from person to person and from event to event that uses up our emotional energy. But this is an important thing to figure out for anybody who wants to be a high performer , a champion for the Lord that bears much fruit. A few of my favorite things that renew me a make me feel great is relaxed time with family and good friends. Recreational activities that I enjoy, especially if done with good friends. Today I went Shad fishing on the Colombia with friends. It was a very relaxing and enjoyable day. Very much like filling my old Ford pickup with Premium non-ethnology gas.