I'll be honest, I'm not a big fan of reading. I find it hard to sit for long periods of time, and keeping my head down for long periods of time maximizes eye and neck strain. Nevertheless, I spend a lot of time wrestling with books. Partly to prepare for the sermon, but also out of curiosity. In the midst of so much thought and contemplation, it's hard to stay still when questions arise. To be more honest, it's painful, because learning never ends.

So for the past 10 years or so, I've been going for bike rides and long walks as regularly as possible as an alternative way to get out of my head. I try to take my mind off the questioning and focus on the immediate future and a specific goal. This has had a positive effect on my ability to think and start over.

In addition, to overcome the difficulty of reading in other ways, since the end of last year I have been listening to books (including the audio Bible) while walking or exercising. In my free time, I enjoy watching the TV that my son bought me as a gift.

Watching a movie or show on my 65-inch high-definition big screen is a precious resting and peace. There is a word that has been seen, heard, and thought about a lot lately. It's "reverse turn" Whether it's a best-selling book or a movie or TV show with tens of millions of viewers, reversals and reversals are a common theme. Most people expect a reversal in their situations and circumstances.

I, for myself, look forward to the reversal the Lord provides at the beginning of each new year. It's a reversal from being thankful for today to having a heavenly hope for tomorrow. As I was meditating on the word reversal, something cleared up in my complex brain. When I read reversal backwards, it was the first half. That's right~ a prerequisite for reversal is that there must be a first half. The more intense the first half is, the more dramatic the reversal will be.

A decisive reversal is possible when the first half has passed and we are in the middle of the second half. And for the reversal to be a drama, we have to live through it and not give up. The Bible has its fair share of reversal stories. Noah's Ark, Joseph as prime minister of Egypt, David from shepherd to king, Esther from Babylonian captivity to queen, Mordecai as semi-prime minister in Babylon, and the reversal of the nation of Israel itself.

Crucially, the great reversal from the Old Testament covenant of law to the New Testament covenant of promise is shown as the consummation of salvation through Jesus. I'll admit it. Our lives are never easy... But our hope of heaven through Jesus is that there is a reverse turn in today's life, because we are spending the second half with the Lord.