by

Unrealistic Expectations Can Really Leave You Deflated

We all have expectations, but unrealistic expectations are never met. 

unrealistic expectations can really leave you deflated

There are all kinds of expectations, ones we keep to ourselves, ones we share with others. 

Some of our expectations are based on logical outcomes from patterns we see. Some expectations are wishful thinking or based on a hunch. 

Unrealistic expectations are just not good.

Sometimes our expectations depend on someone else’s actions. But if we don’t verbalize to that person what we expect, well, it’s still unrealistic.

There was a time – or should I say there have been many times – that my wife Lily expected me to do something but never told me what she expected.

… Like the time I got ready for biking and she got all disappointed because she thought we would spend the afternoon outside working in the yard together. How was I to know that was what she expected? You can’t expect something from someone that they don’t know anything about.

When I was a kid, I pulled out my tooth and put it under my pillow. In the morning my tooth was still there. I expected the tooth to be gone and some coins in its place. But I had not told anyone I had pulled my tooth out, so how could the tooth fairy (Mom and Dad) know how to meet my expectation?

We can also have expectations that are just pie in the sky. They are not based in reality. The data doesn’t confirm what we are hoping for, but we expect an unrealistic outcome anyway.

This was the story of the Toronto Maple Leafs this year. 

Fans were furious and fed up with the team after they failed to advance to the second round of the playoffs. The team certainly didn’t meet their expectations. Now they are calling out all the responsible people who should be let go because of their failure.

I, on the other hand, was pretty happy with how the club did in the playoffs. But my expectations were based on some realistic data.

The Leafs had not beat Boston all year. They finished third in their division behind both Boston and Florida, and ended up seven points behind Boston in the standings.

How could any Leaf fan go into the playoffs expecting them to come out on top in the first round?

I figured they would win one game. They won three and they could have just as easily won a fourth. The Leafs took a team that was better than them to the seventh game and overtime. 

They far exceeded my expectations, but not the unrealistic expectations of so many other fans. 

If people question why they were in that spot in the first place, it’s a money thing in my opinion … too much money invested in four players. It handcuffs them from rounding out the team.

Leaf fans (of whom I am one) were expecting something the team could not produce. Yet we criticize the players and the coach for not meeting our expectations. 

The coach actually got them to play a defensive style of hockey that could win.

For me, I still remember their 1967 Stanley Cup victory and until they change the data, I’m not having unrealistic expectations about the club.

Here’s the thing: We all have expectations for the end of our life. If our expectation is unrealistic, our hope for the end of our life will go unmet and even be far worse than we imagine. God’s word has given us clear expectations for the end of life and, if we follow God’s plan for us, our expectation will be realized. Trust Jesus with your life.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: For what do you consistently have unrealistic expectations? Leave your comments and questions below.

Subscribe to my blog and receive posts like this one delivered to your email inbox.

by

Do I Replace Or Keep Using That Old Item?

We replace things more often than we try to fix old or worn items. 

Do I replace or keep using that old item?

It may be partly due to how things are made these days. There is less craftsmanship in many items we buy now. 

At one time a washing machine would last 25 years or more. Now they say if your washer is still working after 8 to 10 years, you’re doing good. 

Styles also change and you want the latest. So you replace your worn out kitchen table instead of refinishing it. There’s a lot less time involved in replacing versus fixing. It costs more but it seems the benefits outweigh the price tag in many ways.

Shoes fit into that replace versus fix category.

I remember when I was a kid I had two pairs of shoes – running shoes (sneakers) and a pair of dress shoes. I wore my sneakers every day so they wore out quickly. 

But I’m older and don’t wear out shoes the same way. In fact, my running shoes hardly ever get worn. Shoes I wear more now – casual shoes, golf shoes, hiking shoes and sandals that end up being my every day shoes in the summer.

I have another pair of shoes, sneakers, that are only for a certain activity. I wear them for nothing else. In fact, I’m not 100% sure, but I think I inherited them from my dad. For years they sat unused in the garage. Now I wear them to cut the lawn. That’s it.

How they became my grass cutting shoes is simple. I had an old pair of shoes that got so worn out it was dangerous wearing them close to my lawnmower.

This pair of shoes from my dad have been great. They were in good shape and have lasted for years.

But at the end of last year the sole on one shoe started to separate from the upper – a sure sign to toss them. 

I don’t have an old pair of shoes to replace them with and, other than the separation, they are still in good shape.

My wife Lily had a similar issue with summer shoes she really liked. It was just that the soles were wearing out. She didn’t want to look for a new pair. She liked what she had, but it was difficult to find a shoemaker to fix them. One said no, he wouldn’t or couldn’t do it. 

Finally she found a cobbler who said he would fix her shoes. It almost cost the price of a new pair but she wanted to save these shoes. So she paid the price and can continue wearing them.

Me with my grass cutting shoes? Well, it’s a little more rudimentary. I bought some shoe-goo and will be sticking that sole to the upper. It won’t ever separate again. 

But I better get doing it because I need to cut my grass soon.

Here’s the thing: We are so accustomed to discard the old and move on to the new. That applies to how we think about social issues, moral issues and also about God and the Bible. Let’s agree there is nothing wrong with the old; it doesn’t always have to be replaced by something new. The Bible has been around for centuries, yet it offers truth and help that if we apply to our lives today will guarantee a blessing. Dust off your old Bible and read it. Experience the goodness of God’s message to us. 

That’s life!

Paul

Question: What could you fix that you’re tempted to ditch? Leave your comments and questions below.

Subscribe to my blog and receive posts like this to your email inbox.

by

Conflicting Messages Often Hold Us Back

I hate getting conflicting messages from other people, don’t you? I just don’t know what they are trying to communicate.

conflicting messages often hold us back

Conflicting messages leave you feeling uncertain about the intentions, or what was really thought. 

Alanis Morissette wrote a song that was filled with conflicting messages. 

Another group I like wrote a song called, “Falling For The First Time.” The song has lines like, “I’m so cool, too bad I’m a loser. I’m so smart, too bad I can’t get anything figured out. I’m so brave, too bad I’m a baby.”

We can also be subtle when sending out conflicting messages like, “Your hair style is very interesting.” That comment leaves you wondering, “Are you saying you like it or you hate it? What are you trying to tell me?”

We communicate conflicting messages even when we are not trying to. 

Recently I was marking a talk given by a pastor. It was a good message. He had great content and interesting illustrations. But he spent the bulk of his message focussing on a minor idea in the Bible passage rather than the main idea in the text. 

In making my comments on the talk I found myself sending conflicting messages, that I liked the message but he emphasized the wrong thing. 

We are left to decipher the code of conflicting messages for them to be useful to us. That takes effort and often we don’t have the energy, the time or the will to try to decode them so we ignore them. Sometimes we focus on the negative and that fills us with emotion or prevents us from moving forward.

Recently we experienced a total eclipse in our city. My son-in-law Matt came to our home to watch it and brought his drone to take some video of the whole event. 

But when he went to turn it on, there was a message – a conflicting message. It read, “fly with caution” in yellow letters. Below that it read, “can’t take off”. 

Well, how do you fly your drone with caution if you can’t even get the thing airborne?

I had some recollection of this happening to me in the past so I pulled out my drone and set it up. And I got the same messages. I was pretty certain that two years before there was a work around, yet no matter what menu item I clicked, I could not find a way to dismiss the “can’t take off” message.

So we shrugged our shoulders and didn’t use our drones for the eclipse. 

Those conflicting messages bugged me and the next day I investigated further. I set up my drone on our back deck with those two messages flashing on my screen. I tried to take off anyway. 

As soon as I did, another screen came up with a series of questions and check boxes. I clicked on the check boxes, entered my phone number and received a code. When I entered the code, immediately the “can’t fly” message went away and I could take off.

We just needed to be persistent working through the conflicting messages to unlock the drone.

Here’s the thing: God’s conflicting messages to us are that He loves us very much but, because we have sinned, He can’t have anything to do with us. It’s so good that God also provided a solution, if we will persist to unlock it. God sent Jesus, His Son, to die on the cross to pay for our sin, so that we can experience God’s love. I encourage you to persist and unlock the love God has for you.

That’s life!

Paul

Question: What conflicting messages have held you back? Leave your comments and questions below.

Subscribe to my blog and receive posts like this one to your email.

by

Twice Is Too Many Times For Me

They say lightning never strikes twice, but I’ve heard of people getting struck by lightning more than once.

twice is too many times for me

I remember golfing with a buddy when we were on the 16th hole down in a valley when the warning siren blared throughout the whole course. With our lightning rods – I mean umbrellas – raised, my friend Mike began walking up the steep cart path. 

I turned to say something to him and saw a flash of light that almost blinded me. The worst part, however, was the sound of the thunder that boomed about a second after the lightning. 

We knew it was close, looked at each other, said in unison, “Let’s get out of here!” and started running. 

No one wants to be hit by lightning, or even get close to it … but it does happen. 

In Canada there are an average of over 2 million lightning strikes per year, yet only 100 to 150 people are injured each year by lightning. That tells me that lightning is not all that accurate. Still, it claims about 9 or 10 lives per year. 

It’s rare to be struck by lightning more than once, but don’t tell that to Roy Sullivan. He was struck seven times!

Well, my golfing lightning story was the closest I’ve ever come, but something happened the other day that reminded me of being struck by lightning twice. 

When I was in college I got injured playing hockey. I was skating up the ice with a good head of steam and scooped at the puck along the boards. The plastic strip at the base of the boards had a join right where the blade of my stick made contact with the puck. The join wasn’t even and acted as a full stop for my stick. 

I drove the butt end of my stick into my upper thigh and it lifted me right off the ice, until the stick broke in half and I came crashing down. 

It was probably the most pain I’ve experienced in my life.

I’ll never forget it. I had clipped a small artery, just missing the main artery in my leg by a couple of millimetres. The result was a hematoma about twice the size of a golf ball that appeared in mere seconds. 

I ended up having surgery to tie off the artery and drain the blood. 

Fast forward 40 years later. … Last week I was skating with the puck and went to go around a guy right by the boards. It was tight, yet somehow the blade of my stick wedged into a gate – how it got in there, still amazes me.

All I know is the butt end of my stick hit my upper thigh and I was flying in the air.  

I had a déjà vu moment as I landed on the ice.

Thankfully it wasn’t serious this time, just some bruising and tenderness for a few days.

All I can say is, I hope I’m not the Roy Sullivan of hockey rinks.

Here’s the thing: There are some things that we don’t want to have to experience twice, or want another chance at. But God gives us multiple chances to respond to His invitation to begin a relationship with Him through His son, Jesus Christ. Don’t wait for another chance to come along. Put your faith in Christ today.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What is something you hope you will not experience again? Leave your comments and questions below.

Subscribe to my blog and receive posts like this one to your email weekly.

by

This Store Closure Really Surprised Me

Have you ever been surprised by a store that was closed at an odd time? 

This store closure really surprised me

Since forever it seems stores have kept hours that really suited most consumers. But it wasn’t always that way. 

When I was a kid there were no stores open on Sundays. And on holidays you had better have gassed up your car because there were no gas stations open either.

Times changed and slowly Sunday shopping became a regular thing. No one batted an eyelash when parking lots were filled on Sunday afternoons.

Since then stores have stayed open later and later into the evening. … Well, that was until the pandemic.

During the pandemic everyday life kind of shut down. You basically needed an appointment to purchase a few 2 by 4s from the hardware store.

When the pandemic ended, stores didn’t go back to the same hours they kept before the lockdowns. Most stores had routinely been open until 9 or sometimes 10 pm, but now 8 pm is more the rule for store closing. 

There have been a few times that I’ve been caught by this new pattern. I’ve shown up to a few box stores at 7:59 only to find out that they were locking up. 

There was also the time that I left my house at 8:01 thinking I had almost an hour to roam around Best Buy, only to find out that the lights were out and no one was home at 8:10 when I arrived.

Still, eight o’clock is sufficient for most shoppers to get what they need from a store.

But this doesn’t account for anomalies …

I went to college in Regina, Saskatchewan in the early 80’s. I remember a couple of times I needed to get something from a department store on a Thursday afternoon – nothing more normal than for a store to be open Thursday afternoons. 

But I discovered Regina shut down on Thursdays. There was no shopping other than convenience stores and gas stations. 

Thursday! …. Why Thursday? 

I never found the answer to that one. You would think stores would be on a roll, ramping up for the weekend shopping. Nope. They just shut down in the middle of the week. 

It was crazy to my way of thinking. 

And so was this week for me …

My wife, Lily, had mentioned to me that we should try a Chinese restaurant we’ve never been to before. She had read some good reviews. She hadn’t taken anything out of the freezer for dinner so I suggested that we try it that night. 

A couple of hours later we went online to look at their menu and choose what we wanted. Like Pavlov’s dogs, we probably spent five minutes salivating over the different dishes that were pictured on the menu. 

Finally we made our decision. We were just about to order when we read their hours of operation: Closed Wednesdays.

What? …. Who closes their store in the middle of the week like that? I’m sure even stores in Regina are now open throughout the week. 

What a disappointing blow. How then do you even recover to figure out what to eat? 

It was a poor second choice but luckily Five Guys was open on Wednesdays. 

Here’s the thing: We can be caught off guard from time to time in life. But there is a time we should never be caught off guard. That time is when we will meet Jesus face to face. No one knows when that will be, so the best way to not get caught is to start a relationship with Him now. Place your faith in Christ and, whenever the time comes, you will not face a closed sign. 

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: When have you been surprised that something was closed at an inconvenient time?

Subscribe to my blog and receive posts like this one to your email inbox weekly.

by

Light Is So Important That You Can’t Do Without It

Losing light is more problematic than just making a room a darker place. We’ve all gone into a room, flicked on the lights and realized one of the bulbs is burnt out.

light is so important that you can't do without it

You notice immediately that it is not as bright in that room. The room seems dull and, if it’s a bathroom and you are over 40, you complain that you can’t see your face well enough to do the work that needs to be done on it.

Losing just one light out of many makes a difference. Sometimes the difference is between finding something you are looking for and not finding it at all.

The older I get, the more important light is to me. 

I’m fine with low lighting when I’m out for a nice dinner. It doesn’t matter if I can’t make out exactly what the vegetables are on my plate. It’s the mood that counts most and I will forgo being able to see if my steak has been cooked medium or medium rare.

But when I’m looking for something or trying to read, I want to put as much light on the matter as possible. One light down and the search becomes frustrating; reading becomes a chore.

Currently I’m missing a light in our family room and it’s really bugging me.

It’s not a light that prevents me from seeing or changes the mood setting of the room. It’s a light that turns on when my team scores a goal. I have a Budweiser goal light. The only time it turns on is when the Toronto Maple Leafs score a goal. 

I realize that this year the Leafs aren’t scoring a ton of goals, but this light is not turning on for any goals. 

The other thing about this light is that it not only cycles a red light for a few seconds, it also gives two blasts of what sounds like a truck horn.

It is awesome! 

It can be annoying if you are doing something else or in the middle of speaking. It can be frightening if you are not watching the game and all of a sudden the light and horn go off. I’ll admit there have been a few times I’ve jumped when it’s gone off. 

But it is also very exciting when you hear the sound and come running into the room, see the light flashing and catch the replay of the goal.

That’s all nice but sadly my light has not been turning on at all this year. 

For the first part of the hockey season I couldn’t connect it to the internet. I thought it was a problem with my modem, but it turned out that its batteries were low. The goal light takes four D sized batteries. 

After I put new batteries in I had no problem connecting to the internet. But it’s still not announcing goals.

Other people have also had issues with their lights not going off. … Maybe Budweiser had to lay off the guy that presses the goal button. They have had some troubles lately.

All I know is, I’m missing my light and I want it back. And if not now, at least for the playoffs.

Here’s the thing: For people who have a relationship with Jesus, they have a light in them, a light that guides them and shows them the way. This light is actually the person of the Holy Spirit. The only thing that can dim this light is if we ignore Him. Pay attention to the light in you and follow His direction. 

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What light in your life have you noticed is not working? Leave your comments and questions below.

Subscribe to my blog and receive posts like this one to your email inbox weekly.

by

A Burn Can Multiply To Become A Double Burn

Have you ever been burned by the actions of others, only to experience a second burn from that first action?

a burn can multiply to become a double burn

It happens. 

Maybe you have been part of a struggling company that got taken over by a competitor. The first burn was when you had to adjust to a new system, a new boss. But the second burn came when the amalgamation made your position redundant and you were let go. That’s a double burn.

I remember driving up north when a deer hit my car. It was an older car, but still drivable. But when I took it to the insurance claim centre the next week, they wrote the car off. They told me I couldn’t drive it. I replied that I’d already driven it over 550 kilometres since the accident! 

It didn’t change their minds. They just gave me a lift to the car rental place. 

I got burned by having my car damaged through no fault of my own. Then the insurance company gave me less than what I needed to replace my car. I got burned twice in that deal. 

Getting burned twice is being put out in two different ways from one action. 

Sometimes we can be the cause of our misfortune, but often we are not. And that’s what makes that double burn so annoying. I was not responsible for it, but it happened to me … twice.

So this is what happened to me the other day … 

I play hockey on the military base in my town. For that I pay for a gym membership and it includes pick up hockey at the rink. 

I purchase a pass for a few months at a time and only renew for the time I need to finish out the hockey season. I don’t use the gym year-round so I only need my membership from October to April.

Well, my pass was ending and so I went in to top it up until April. All was good. Then I went and played hockey. 

After hockey was over, one guy said, “There will be no pick up hockey next week due to the strike.” 

I immediately thought, “Wait! I just paid for my membership pass two hours ago.” 

Not being in the military, I didn’t know anything about the impending strike of the civilian support staff. 

I understand their complaint. They don’t get paid very much and these days that’s got to be difficult. I am sympathetic to their cause, but I don’t like them taking my money for a membership without informing me about the impending strike. 

That was Friday and immediately after the weekend I would not be able to use my membership for who knows how long.

If I would have paid after the strike it would have cost me less. But now, not only am I missing out on hockey because of the strike, I paid more than I needed to … a double burn!

I hope my wasted fee ends up in a support worker’s pocket. 

Here’s the thing: Having a relationship with Christ has a double benefit. You have Him in your life now to help you, guide you, comfort you, but you also will experience eternity with Him. The contrary is also true: no relationship with Christ means you miss out now AND for eternity. It’s the worst double burn you can experience. Don’t wait to put your faith in Christ. 

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: How have you experienced a double burn? Leave your comments and questions below.

Subscribe to my blog and receive posts like this one to your email weekly.

by

Being Free In The Western World May Not Be As You Think

I’ve come to believe that we here in North America – Canada anyway – are not as free as we think we are.

being free in the western world may not be as you think

On the surface it seems like we can say and do what we want … within legal limits, of course. 

In fact, there are more freedoms now for some things than ever before. Marijuana is now legal – that’s a new freedom. But at one time they put cocaine in Coca Cola and that was legal! 

… Maybe there are tradeoffs.

Still, I can go where I please and can say what I want. … But can I?

Can I express my opinion or will my ideas and actions be considered by some to be wrong, even against the law … to the extent that I keep them to myself for fear of being fined, constrained or even arrested?

I saw a video the other day that really disturbed me. 

A reporter – some call him a personality; I’ll call him a citizen – was walking alongside a Federal Minister asking questions. He had a camera crew with him and a microphone in his hand. The Minister was walking fast and wasn’t answering his questions. 

Suddenly a man dressed in black stepped up and blocked the citizen with the microphone. The citizen had his head turned and didn’t see this man step up and they bumped into each other. The man in black then grabbed the citizen and told him he was under arrest for assaulting an officer. The man in black was a police officer of some kind.

I’ve seen this move before in basketball; it’s called a pick. A player will stop and block an opposing player so his teammate with the ball can get around the opposing player.

That’s what happened in the video. The officer set a pick on the citizen and the minister walked around them both. The citizen was arrested for committing a foul. 

The only problem here was the officer was moving and moved into the citizen to set the pick. In a legal pick, the blocker must first have his feet planted and be stationary. In my observation, the guy committing the foul was the man in black. He should have been arrested … or the reporter should have been given two free questions to ask the Minister. 

I heard later that, after the reporter was arrested, they dropped the charges … and for good reason: it was all on video. (You can watch the video here.)

There was no assault; there was just a poorly executed basketball move to stop an annoying citizen (reporter) from carrying out his assignment. 

We believe we are free and, in fact, have rights to express ourselves in a legal way. But we are not as free as we think. 

Apparently, an annoying citizen can be arrested for asking questions that an elected member of Parliament does not feel particularly inclined to answer.

If you’re a person of influence or power, it goes with the territory that you’ll be stopped and asked questions, regardless of whether you want to answer or not.

Just ask any celebrity or sports personality. They don’t have people arrested when they’re asked questions they don’t like. 

Sadly, someone else can deem our expression as wrong and even illegal.  

… Which leaves us thinking twice about how we express ourselves and our freedom.

Here’s the thing: Many people think that to give your life to Christ is to give up your freedom to make decisions for yourself. But none of us are free to make our own decisions and think as we want. A Christian simply chooses to place his freedom under God’s rule. And we all place ourselves under those who were elected to rule over us, regardless of whether we think it’s good or not. One thing we can be sure of is that God has our best interests in mind.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: When have you felt you couldn’t express your opinion? Leave your comments and questions below.

Subscribe to my blog and receive posts like this to your email weekly.

by

When Pretty Good Is Just Not Good Enough

Sometimes “pretty good” isn’t “good enough”. I use the phrase “pretty good” a lot. Often I use it to describe something I think is really good. 

when pretty good is just not good enough

Maybe I’ve filled out too many surveys and evaluations to put everything in the excellent category. My default has become “pretty good” because it’s possible that something could be better but I don’t know it. I leave room for some improvement.

So when asked how dinner was, my “pretty good” means I really enjoyed it. 

When a hockey player scores an amazing goal, they get my “pretty good” approval.

To me pretty good isn’t sub-standard; it’s not mediocre; it’s not even good enough. Pretty good means it’s very good.

Recently a friend of mine moved his cottage. They built a foundation and basement on a piece of land. Then they jacked their cottage up and rolled it about six properties down the road to the new foundation.  

When I saw the pictures of all they had done and how it looked when they lowered the cottage on the new footings, I thought it was fantastic. I told him, “Man, that’s pretty good what you did there.”

I say all this about this phrase because I don’t give out a “pretty good” for just anything.

About a week and a half ago I was playing hockey. Halfway through our game I sat on the bench for ten minutes while they flooded the ice again. I think I got a little chilled because, when we got back on the ice, I noticed my back was a bit stiff – not bad, just tender. 

As I kept playing, I could feel my lower back tighten up. I even got to the point where I decided to call it quits before our ice time was up.

I don’t usually do that, but it was bugging me.

The next day I decided to give my back a rest. The morning after that, I again decided not to play because my back still didn’t feel quite right. It wasn’t bad, but I felt I had tweaked it slightly.

That was Christmas week and I didn’t have hockey until the end of it. 

Our annual Silcock Christmas gathering includes renting ice and playing with the kids and nephews. By then my back was feeling, well, you know – “pretty good”. I wouldn’t say it was perfect but it was feeling really good again – something like 85% good.

I thought playing hockey with the family would be just fine. And it was for most of it. 

But about three quarters of the way through, I stretched to receive a pass and felt my back tighten up. It wasn’t bad, but I did feel like I tweaked it again.

Now I’m going to have to miss hockey for at least another week. 

Sometimes “pretty good” isn’t “good enough”.

Here’s the thing: Many of us feel like we are “pretty good” and that should be good enough to get us in God’s good books. But being “pretty good” is not good enough when God is perfect. Pretty good will never match perfection. God knew this too, so He sent Jesus to be our sacrifice to make up the difference from being “pretty good” to being good enough for God. Take Jesus as your Lord and Saviour and trust Him to make you good enough for God.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What does “pretty good” mean to you? Leave your questions and comments below.

Subscribe to my blog and receive posts like this one to your email each week.

by

Waiting Is What Drives Christmas Each Year

There is a lot of waiting that takes place at Christmas time. Sure, there is anticipation and celebration and, of course, there is a ton of preparation.

waiting is what drives Christmas each year

You can see the preparation by how full the parking lots are at the mall, or the crowds filing in and out of Costco. People are looking for presents to give, decorations to display, and food to make.

But besides all that, Christmas is a time of waiting. 

We wait for people to respond to invitations to get together. We wait to see if the day we set the invitation for will be acceptable to those invited. We wait to set dates for when the family can all gather together. 

We wait for the big turkey dinner to be ready on Christmas Day, and the smells of it all cooking make the wait seem never-ending.

We also wait to open presents as we see more and more gifts pile up under the tree. 

I remember when I was little, the waiting was the hardest thing for my brother and I. Most years the waiting was too hard for us and we started snooping around. Our parents had to be good and creative at hiding our presents before Christmas. 

One year we found our big present all wrapped up, trying to blend in on a shelf in our dad’s office area. The waiting was over the top torture. Waterboarding is nothing compared to the waiting that year. 

We thought we were pretty stealth in lifting a corner of the coloured wrapping paper but somehow our parents found out. Christmas morning the present was not in the pile. When we opened all the presents, our parents said because we had peeked, they took that present back. 

Both John and I were quite devastated for a few minutes until they hauled it out. 

It was the biggest hot wheel track set you could buy at the time. 

It was the waiting – or lack of it – that nearly cost us to miss the experience of setting up that hot wheels track and watching our cars zoom the length of our basement.

This year one of the most difficult things was waiting for our kids to arrive for Christmas. And the waiting was hard because they didn’t get here until late Christmas afternoon.

Though Christmas Eve and Christmas morning don’t pause for anything, in effect the waiting for our kids delayed Christmas for us on an emotional level until they got here.

You can’t really get into the whole Christmas spirit when you are still waiting for everyone to show up. We had to be patient and wait until one couple arrived, but then wait longer for the other couple to show up.  

It’s like you can’t start Christmas without them all there. 

Waiting is the nemesis of Christmas, but it is also part of what fuels how big that Christmas is. The unknown, the expectation and the excitement are all exaggerated because of the waiting.

So waiting is what we do at Christmas.

Here’s the thing: For hundreds of years God’s people waited for the birth of the Messiah. There were prophecies and signs of His coming, but they could only wait. Even now we wait for Christ to return. And one day He will. We don’t know when, but we wait. And God waits for all those who have and will be invited to show up. Be sure you are one who’s waiting for Christ. Put your faith and hope in Him.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What were you waiting for this Christmas? Leave your comments and questions below.

Subscribe to my blog and receive posts like this one to your email weekly.