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. 

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.

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There are times when you have doubts about something. Then a bit of confirmation seals your confidence.

Many years ago I encouraged a staff member of mine to seek a different position in another church. We had some tough conversations and I knew it was not what he really wanted. But I also knew it was the best thing for his growth and for our church.

Still, when he left, I felt bad and wondered if I had made the right decision.

Two years later I met up with this former staffer who was now in a new position. I was a little apprehensive when I saw him but he came rushing over to me and said the move he made to his new ministry was best for him. He thanked me for helping him make that move.

It had been two years and, though I didn’t think about him all the time, there were moments in those years when I really wondered if I had been too hard or had that difficult conversation with him too soon.

But all that doubt, feeling unsure if I’d done the right thing, disappeared in an instant. When he greeted me with a big thank you, I knew without a doubt and was confident that I’d done the right thing.

Well, back in October when I retired, there were definite signs that I was retired and in many ways I felt like I was retired. But I had some expectations of what retirement would be like. There were a couple of things that just didn’t fit the vision of retirement that I had.

One of the things I thought I would do is play more sports. I envisioned increased mountain biking and playing more hockey. The weather was quite unpredictable and I found that I didn’t go biking as much as I thought I would. Golf was winding down and I only ended up playing a few games late in the fall.

But when hockey started up, that is when I wondered what this retirement gig was going to be like.

Over the years I’ve played hockey two or three times a week during the winter months. But this fall, with all the extra time on my hands, I was only playing once a week.

The old pick up hockey that I’d played for literally 24 years had dried up. I signed up to play once during the fall and there was only six of us. Let’s just say it was not fun.

Other than that one regular weekly hockey game early Saturday mornings, I had nothing else. And I was supposed to be retired, free to play more hockey than I’d played for years. Instead I was playing just one hour per week.

… Well, that is until this past week. I just finished playing hockey for the fourth time! Now I’m convinced I’m retired.

Here’s the thing: There are times we may have doubts over decisions we have made – maybe even doubts about God’s plan for our lives. But when we see His answer to a prayer or a confirmation of His hand on our life, we get convinced all over again. Never stop praying and interacting with God. He will continue to give you confidence in Him.

That’s Life! Paul
Question: What do you need some convincing of right now? Leave your comments and questions below.

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We have a brand new star in our family. And the light from this star has just started to shine brightly.

Have you ever looked up at the sky at night? 

If you live in the city you might not think to do it because the city lights wash out the stars in the sky. But if you go to the country, far enough away from the glow of the city lights, the sky lights up with stars in an incredible way. 

One time a friend of mine asked me if I wanted to see the sky through his telescope. I jumped at the chance and one night drove out of town to his place. 

I didn’t know what to expect, but what I discovered was not some little telescope set up on a tripod that you could get for cheap at Costco.

When I saw it, I gasped. It was huge. My friend said it belonged to a group and was the largest telescope in the region. In order to look through the eye piece, you had to climb about an eight-foot ladder.

We looked at many different star clusters and constellations. Near the end of our time, he pointed the telescope at the moon. It was particularly full that night. 

The moon was so close, I could see the craters on its surface. It was so bright that it hurt my eyes; I had to keep looking away.

And the moon is not even a star; it just reflects light. Can you imagine how bright stars would be if they were closer? … Our sun is a star and you can’t look directly at it without hurting your eyes.

Well, the star in our family is not that kind of a star, though she is shining quite brightly for a person. 

Our daughter was just featured in a commercial for GoDaddy websites (you can watch it here).  

It’s not because I’m a proud father that I’m calling her a star. That’s what the GoDaddy people called her in their press release to the major networks in Canada that picked up their campaign. 

Karlie isn’t an actor and she didn’t even pursue this commercial. GoDaddy asked her to submit an entry to a competition they were running. 

People on the set were surprised to find out that she wasn’t an actor, but rather a real business owner. 

They say that everyone gets their fifteen minutes of fame. In Karlie’s case, it’s fifteen seconds of a commercial. 

However, if the campaign goes as long as they say, and with her picture on a billboard in downtown Toronto, maybe it will all add up to her fifteen minutes of stardom.

All I know is, as a proud father, I’m basking in the light of the new shining star in our family. 

Here’s the thing: The Bible talks about us as being shining stars. In Philippians, Paul says we shine like stars by reflecting the glory of Christ in our lives to other people. In that sense we are more like the moon. But the fact that Christ lives in each believer makes us more like stars. So if you belong to Christ, shine. Especially at this time, shine bright as stars to the family, friends and acquaintances around you. 

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: Who could you shine the light of Christ to this week? Leave your comments and questions below.

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