“Be not over much wicked, neither be thou foolish:  why shouldest thou die before thy time?”  —Ecclesiastes 7:17

In all actuality, I had planned to put another article in my column today that I will present next week, which I believe will make for interesting reading for the citizens of Dillon County and beyond.  However, the subject that I want to share with you today is of utmost importance because it deals with the subject of life and death.  This is a subject that all will have to deal with at some point in their life, but regrettably, one that few want to seriously consider or discuss right now.  This article came out of two things that recently occurred in my life.  First, it came out of the fact that I recently had a colonoscopy, which is a procedure of prevention and early detection of colon cancer.  It was the third one that I have had since I reached the age of fifty.  I am serious about taking care of my body by eating right, exercising, drinking enough water and juice, getting enough sleep, not worrying, and fully utilizing the best medical and health care professionals that my money and insurance will afford me.  Finally, it came out of a conversation that I had with one of my brothers.  Out of much concern and compassion, I asked him if he ever had a colonoscopy.  When he said no, I pressed the issue and urgency of the matter to his disdain.  He frankly told me in a very strong and stubborn tone, “I don’t want to talk about that right now!”  He is obviously a victim of the crazy belief of “the fear of what might be and what you don’t know perhaps can’t hurt you, at least for the present.”  
Of course, that is a very foolish idea and have ultimately led to the premature death of millions.  There are untold millions of people who embrace a very unwise belief that no one can die before their time.  Due to distortions of the scriptures and human ideas and traditions, many people erringly believe that regardless of how careless, reckless, or negligent one might be about his health, safety, or life, death will not call your name before your time.  
Well, I could have produced quite a few relevant scripture verses with the one we considered at the beginning that soundly show they are badly mistaken.
Reckless driving, abusive living, and refusal to go to the doctor early and on a routine basis have brought about the untimely and premature death of many who would otherwise be alive today.
I believe that my father, who died of prostate cancer at the age of seventy-four would perhaps still be alive today if he would have taken better care of his body by going to the doctor for routine check-ups.  I am quite certain that if this had been the case, he would not have died of prostate cancer, due to the fact of early detection.  
Like my brother and far too many others who either live in fear or denial, my father ultimately had to go to the doctor, but it was too late to stop the spread of the cancer.  The only thing they could do for him was to help to alleviate the awesome pain that came with this horrific cancer, which gradually and speedily zapped his strength, rendering him into being a shell of the man he use to be physically.  
A friend of mine who had suffered with stomach pain and the release of blood in his stool failed to go to the doctor while those obvious symptoms continued to worsen over quite a few months.
Finally, he was forced to go to the doctor, and that which he feared and perhaps could have averted, was diagnosed to be cancer.  
The latest report I received from him was that he was struggling to accept and adjust to the reality of this insidious disease that perhaps will cause him to die before his time, if it cannot be destroyed in its late stages by radiation and chemotherapy.  
If only he would have gone to the doctor earlier when he first began to get the symptoms, or better yet, if only he would have gone to his doctor routinely, who would have most likely have detected or diagnosed this malignant disease in its benign or early stage.  
It grieves me to know that there are countless people out there who are hastening their date with death by living reckless, negligent, and irresponsible lives.  
Some are flirting with death through their fool-hearted attempt to be Evil Knievel on their motorcycles.  I love riding motorcycles and once owned a 2005 Honda Goldwing that I truly enjoyed cruising around on, especially on the country roads.  
There is absolutely nothing intrinsically wrong or risky with riding a motorcycle when you wear your helmet and use your common sense.  
As a matter of fact, far more people die from accidents in cars than from accidents on motorcycles.  
Nevertheless, what disturbs me about many of the youngsters who ride these speed bikes is their fool-heartedness and risk taking.  
Many will zoom down the highway and often time in heavily populated areas like they are racing at the drag strip.  Then there are the would-be-daredevils who think they have mastered the bikes that love to show off by riding on only the back wheel.  
Such foolishness is a recipe for disaster one day; it’s just a matter of time.  
Finally, what about the smokers who just cannot let the cigarettes go or kick the nicotine addition.  I have had quite a few close relatives and friends who would no doubt still be alive today if they would have just stopped smoking, chewing tobacco, or dipping snuff in time.  
Their addition to nicotine shortened their lives.  The report recently came out that people who smoke are sixty times more likely to develop cancer, heart trouble, influenza, COPD, respiratory disease, or other chronic diseases than those who do not smoke.  
Also, according to the Centers of Disease Control (CDC), smoking kills more people yearly than HIV, motor vehicle accidents, illegal drug use, firearm related accidents, and alcohol related accidents all together.   
Smoking also accounts for an astounding and pandemic 480,000 deaths in America each year.  It is also reported that smoking related deaths are ten times more than from all of the wars fought by the United States during its entire history.  With facts and statistics like that, can anyone with common sense make a disclaimer or dispute the fact that cigarette smoking is our number one health hazard?  It is by far the most pleasurable thing that people love to do and are addicted to that will cause them to die before their time.  By the way, the colonoscopy procedure that was done at Dillon Family Medicine by my personal physician, Dr. Paul Freel and his team, came out ok.  I will not need to have another one until I am seventy-five years old.  Needless to say, I left Dillon Family Medicine unashamedly rejoicing and praising the Lord.