How Snow Can Keep You From Facing The Inevitable

When I woke up this morning there was a cottony layer of snow on the ground and my heart sank a little.

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It sank partly because we just got rid of a barrel full of the white stuff from about two weeks ago. Even though I only saw the snow through the blinds – it looked like the fuzz that grows on a man’s face after about three days of no shaving (like I would know) – something told me this stuff is here to stay for the season.

I should have been prepared. Yesterday, I watched two NFL games that were played in blizzard-like conditions … it was inevitable that the storm would move up to Canada and get us.

I like the usual debate we have around here at Christmas time. As it approaches, we start asking, “Do you think we will have snow for Christmas?”, or, “I wonder if we’ll have a green Christmas this year”.

Everyone wants those thin flakes that look like coriander seed and taste like wafers made from honey … oh, no wait, that’s manna that God sent the Israelites in the desert.  Our while flakey stuff is tasteless and has to be shovelled!

We all want it, but we’re fine if it only falls on Christmas Eve, or even really early Christmas day. That way it looks like Christmas but we haven’t had to dig ourselves out of it yet.

This snowfall, however, is coming a little earlier than I had hoped. There’s a chance it might not stay with us. We miraculously got rid of the last batch with some mild weather, some rain and a day of +10 celsius (that’s 50 degrees fahrenheit).

But they’re calling for snow for the next five days. I think I have to face it that winter is here to stay. There will be no guessing about a white Christmas this year; it’s a lock that we’ll have snow.

Then again, you never know. The weather could turn. And look! … Well you can’ t look, but I can – it’s now raining here on the other side of my window and the snow is rapidly disappearing. That might make for some slippery roads tonight if the temperature drops.

That also means we can still play the game of “Will we have snow for Christmas?” The odds are not in my favour though. They (who are they, anyway?) are calling for about 10 centimetres of snow this week.

There’s just no way to escape it, that is, if I’m going to stay here in Kingston. Snow is what we face every year, and even with the crazy weather patterns and global warming (it’s not happening fast enough), a snowy forecast is in my future.

Here’s the thing: There are so many things, like the weather, that are completely out of our control, yet we spend time thinking about them and hoping for something else. We don’t really want to face what is inevitable. It’s best, however, if we just prepare for it.

We can do that with God, too. We can hope that the Bible is wrong, or that He will be accepting of everyone in the end, but that’s not facing the inevitable. It’s just best to prepare for meeting God, by beginning a relationship with the one that Christmas is all about – Jesus Christ.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What do you dislike most about winter? Leave your comment below.

Why My Old Stereo Conversion Project Isn’t Perfect

Lily is away this weekend so I thought I would do a conversion of our old stereo into a home theatre.

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Many homes have some kind of additional speaker set up with their TV, but not us. There has always been other things we needed more than feeling the couch shake while watching Jason Statham or Bruce Willis blow something up in a movie.

It all became possible when Lily asked if we needed the stereo cabinet in the living room. To her shock, I said we didn’t, and within about 15 minutes it was all gone … to her delight.

We don’t really use it anymore with iPhones and iTunes holding all our music. And the stereo is old, like about 27 years old. We even have a turntable and a cassette deck! Our speakers are still good, but they’ve had to pump out lots of “Little Feat” tunes over the years.

Still, you’d think it would be easy to hook all that stuff up to your TV, and bingo, your wife could watch her live Sound of Music special, featuring Carrie Underwood, and it would be like she was in the theatre.

Not so fast. Our TV is not the same vintage as our stereo. In fact, it only has one audio output and it is an optical audio connection. If my old stereo could talk and you asked to  plug an optical audio cord into it, it would respond with, “Whach you talkin’ ‘bout, Willis?”

From the internet, I was able to find out that there might be a conversion box I can buy. I just hope that the conversion box isn’t the same price as a new home theatre system. I’m trying to do this on the cheap – make a quick conversion from stereo system to home theatre, with very little time, effort and money involved.

Years ago, my son and I saw an infomercial for an “ab dolly”. I thought I could make one cheaper. So Mike and I got some wood, bought some casters and made one ourselves.

Lily now uses it to put under heavy objects when she wants to move them from one place to another. It didn’t turn out that great.

I know this conversion won’t be perfect either. It won’t be like buying all new equipment that is completely compatible with my TV. The speakers sounded great in the day but I’m not sure how they will perform in the 21st century. I’m also going to have to get up off the couch and walk over to the unit and turn it on by hand. My stereo doesn’t have a remote.

But just think, if I can get this all hooked up this afternoon, when I turn on the Leaf game tonight, it’s going to be like I’m sitting just behind the bench!

The downside is Lily will see this blog before she sees the home theatre conversion. Oh the thoughts and images that will be running through her head! Maybe I’ll stick a Christmas bow on it all so it will look festive for her.

Here’s the thing: Thinking that we can make our conversion experience with God something that doesn’t involve a total change will be more work in the long run and the results will not be all that satisfying. Give yourself completely to God, don’t hold on to the old in any way. It will just complicate your conversion.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What have you tried to convert, only to find it wasn’t as good as if you got something new? Leave your comment below.

How Real Change Happens From Within

I made a big change in my appearance the other day. I didn’t get a new suit or comb my hair differently … I just shaved my whole face.

It’s the first time I’ve done that in almost thirty years. Since 1984 I’ve had a moustache and for the last 15 years I’ve had a goatee. But on December 1st, I shaved it all off!

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I had to take a second and third look at myself in the mirror to make sure it was really me staring back. It was hard not to smile and repeat the words, “Oh boy” as in, “Oh boy, what have I done?!”. But I’m going to give it a little time to get used to it.

One thing I’m not getting used to is shaving. It’s not that there is more real estate to take care of now, we’re only talking about a face. But, I have scars on my face from hockey that have to be considered now.

I’ve had 5 stitches beside my right eye and 3 stitches on my right eyelid. Then I had 3 stitches on the left corner of my mouth from a fight with Neil Lumsden, who was just inducted into the CFL Football Hall of Fame. Besides those, I had 4 stitches under my bottom lip and 3 stitches on the left corner of my chin.

The last three scars come into play when I shave. I haven’t had to bother with them for so long, but now I have to navigate around my face like it’s a land mine to keep me from nicking myself with the razor.

Though my face doesn’t look like Gerry Cheevers’ goalie mask, I do have a few marks that ensure I stay attentive when I have a sharp instrument in hand near my melon.

It all changes how I look, and it’s taking some getting used to it. I might grow it all back, but I’m going to wait and give it some time to sink in.

I’m finding I have to keep telling myself that I look different but I’m the same guy.

… And others have weighed in on the change whether they know it or not. Some people have said nothing which means they probably don’t like it. I’ve had lots of people acknowledge that I’ve shaved, but no comment on what they think of it. That’s probably a bad sign too.

One person came out and just said he didn’t like it. My daughter saw a picture and said “Wow! He looks so different, yet the same.”  And my son said, “That’s going to take some serious getting used to.”

Both Lily and I aren’t sure what to think. I think I’m looking at my brother when I look in the mirror and I start to laugh. I’m not sure what I’ll do.

Here’s the thing: Shaving my face hasn’t changed who I am one bit. I’m still the same guy on the inside. But making a change on your inside will result in outward change.

A Christian is first changed on the inside and then that change is made visible in his or hers appearance through actions, attitudes and words. So when we look in the mirror, we should ask ourselves, “Is my outside appearance matching my inside appearance?”

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What outward change have you made that elicited lots of attention? Leave your comment below.

How Being Sick Hijacks Your Whole Life

This week I got sick. Ya, ya, I know, I just wrote about how to keep from getting sick (“Four things you need to divert a cold”). But before you get ready to sue me for bad medical advice, you need to know that this sickness was different. I got food poisoning.

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My wife, Lily, thinks I got the flu but I know what I had and it was food poisoning. I think she wants it to be the flu so I can’t blame her for feeding me that leftover chicken last Monday.

It’s not like the chicken had been left on the counter and the flies had been circling for a few days, but it had been in the fridge past my internal best before date. It’s just a sixth sense I have.

I didn’t even see it coming, though the evening before my stomach was rumbling. I didn’t feel bad and just imagined that by morning everything would be normal. Well, about 5 am on Tuesday things were NOT normal.

I spent the next three hours in and out of the bathroom … enough said.

I was achy all over and that lasted the rest of the day. I was so wiped that I slept several times during the day to the point that I was completely disoriented.

The day seemed to last forever. I turned on the TV at one point, thinking it must be late afternoon, only to realize that it was only 1 pm. I had no energy and I felt so weak, much like a kid in the grocery store who’s had a meltdown, sprawled on the floor near the sugar cereal aisle.

There was nothing that could appease me. I didn’t dare eat anything – the memory of the early morning dash made all food totally unappealing. Sipping water at first was huge, like a child taking his first ever steps across the room.

I held my breath to see what would happen or which way it would go. I could hear it travelling through my system, at times like a gurgling brook, then like some light rapids, and finally dropping quite low in my system like a waterfall.

At least it was some entertainment. I was pretty bored all day, not that I didn’t have anything to do. There were things for me to work on, things I really needed to be working on, but I only had the energy to listen to my stomach get a workout while sipping water.

I fell asleep on the couch at about eight in the evening and, when I came to just before 10, I noticed that the achy-ness had gone. I breathed a sigh, and knew it was over and I’d be alright the next morning.

I called it a day and went to bed.

Here’s the thing: Bad food can impact everything about you, all your body parts, and even your thoughts and emotions. Not dealing with sin does the same thing. Not only will it affect your thoughts, emotions and action, but in some cases it can affect your health as well. Make speedy confession part of your internal best before date.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What have you experienced that took control of your body? Leave your comment below.

Why Letting Go Of The Old Is So Difficult

I’m having a hard time deciding on changing some old hockey equipment for new stuff – my hockey gloves and skates.

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My hockey gloves are only 6 years old, but I don’t have any palms in them any more.  My skates, well, that’s another story. They’re about 20 years old.

My skates are so old young people look at them and wonder if they should be in a museum! The other day, I was in the change room and a young guy looked over at my skates and said, “How old are THEY?!” He said it with a tone of “What are those things anyway?!”

My skates are probably about as old as he is.

I’ve thought of getting new skates but that thought scares me. They don’t make my kind any more.

I have top of the line (in their day) CCM Tacks called “Vacu Tacks”. To fit them, they would have you put your feet in the skates and then they would take a heat gun and heat up the outside, pretty much until your feet started to cook inside.

When they were sufficiently hot, with your feet still in the skate, they would but a rubber bag around the skate and zip it up. They would attach a compressor to a valve on the bag and they would literally suck all the air out of the bag, causing the hot skate to form to the shape of your foot.

They fit perfectly from the first time I wore them. It’s not going to be easy to get a new pair to fit like that again. Besides, my skates still work, and are in pretty good shape for all the hockey they have witnessed over the years.

My gloves are another story. I basically hold onto my stick bare-handed with a floppy lump of protection over top. Getting new gloves is not easy either.

They have to be the right size, so my hand doesn’t slide around in them. The palm leather must be very supple so its almost like there is nothing there. And there has to be enough freedom at the wrist so I can maneuver my hands easily for stick handling.

People think I’m crazy to hang onto my old equipment. But this stuff works, I’m comfortable with it, it’s been with me a long time.

I’m afraid that my experience with new equipment won’t be as good as my experience with my old equipment. Why would I go for something new that, in the end, doesn’t work as well as what I’m already using? Being new is not always enough reason to switch.

So I’ve been to a few stores, I’ve tried on dozens of gloves, and I’ll keep trying to find a pair that will work. I may have to go outside of Kingston to get the right pair. I’m going to take my time to make sure they’ll be right.

As for skates, I can’t get myself to do anything more than just look at the display models in stores. I’m not quite ready to try a pair on.

Here’s the thing: Often when we have had an experience with God, whether it is in our devotions, or in ministry, we tend to savour it. We are satisfied with it and don’t want to move on to a new experience that might be different or feel uncomfortable. Don’t let yourself get stuck there. Keep looking for what God has next for you to experience.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What do you keep using even though it’s almost worn out and you are due for a new one? Leave your comment below.

How To Pay Attention To The Alarms Of Life

Alarms go off around us all the time. Some are not that noticeable, others are unmistakable.

The other day, Lily bought a new alarm clock. She wanted something a little more modern, a little smaller, a little more stylish. My question is, do you want the alarm clock to wake you up? If so, what the alarm sounds like is the first concern.

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Lil’s new alarm does a couple of things to wake you up. It glows in changing colours when the alarm goes off. And believe me, the glow is pretty bright. It cycles through several colours.

You may wonder how I know this. Well, the other day, rather than getting up out of bed to read the Bible and do my devotions, I decided to do them in bed.

There I was sitting up in bed with my iPad, hoping the glow from it would not wake Lily. I shouldn’t have worried. When her alarm went off, I waited for her to click it off but nothing happened. She didn’t move, and for two minutes I watched the light change colour to green then amber then blue … etc.

There was an audible alarm that went off as well, but it wasn’t a loud noise. This alarm has sounds, and the sound Lil picked was a babbling brook. Other than the fact that I felt like I needed to go to the washroom, it was a very nice sound.

… It didn’t wake Lily, but it was soothing. This two minute routine happened three times over the next 20 minutes until I gently woke her up by saying, “You need a new alarm clock.”

She immediately thought it had not gone off. But I assured her it had gone off three times with her face basking in the glow of the alarm’s changing light each time.

It doesn’t matter how nice an alarm clock looks, or what kind of features it has, an alarm clock – to be worth anything – has to wake you up!  If it doesn’t, it’s no good.

Personally, my alarm has to be loud enough and annoying enough to wake me up. Over the years that’s not always been enough for me. I’ve had to put the alarm far from my reach so I had to almost get out of bed to shut it off.

I could never use the snooze button either or I’d keep hitting it for hours. I have to get right up. No music for me; I would enjoy it too much in my half woken daze and just stay in bed.

No, for me an alarm has to startle me, rattle me, make me jump … like the security alarm we have at work. When I’ve mistakenly set it off, it blasts so loud your heart jumps out of your body, your heart dings a bell in your head, and your pacemaker restarts itself. It’s frightening.

Lily either needs to turn up the sound on the babbling brook alarm clock so that it’s a crashing wave sound, or look for an alarm that will do what it’s supposed to do … wake her up.

Here’s the thing: God often uses alarms to get our attention. Sometimes the alarm doesn’t start out to be very loud and we don’t hear it. Then, when it becomes a little annoying, we are tempted to hit the snooze button. But don’t hit snooze; rather, listen intently to God’s alarms.  React to the alarm by getting up and following what the Lord wants you to do.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What kind of an alarm do you need to wake up to? Leave your comment below.

Why Aging Gives You New Perspectives And Opportunities

What goes around comes around, and when it comes to aging there is a lot of that going around. I just started playing hockey at 6 am Saturday mornings (there are still a few spots if anyone’s interested), and believe me, I didn’t think I would like it … but I do!

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Back when I was growing up, 6 am games were the worst. I hated having to get up in the dark, still half asleep, barely able to put my equipment on in the correct order. Those games were murder.

Then, as a father, I hated having to take my son to 6 am practices – mid-week, if you could believe it – adding the hassle of trying to get him to school on time after practice.

Part of the reason I hated 6 am games or practices was I didn’t like being stirred from my warm, comfortable bed, only to be jolted awake by the cold of the arena.

I never minded playing late at night; in fact, it didn’t matter if there was ice at 10pm, midnight or 1 in the morning – I was up for it. But now I don’t like playing hockey at night. It gets to be around 8:30 pm and I start debating whether I really want to play or not.

You have to understand it’s not as simple as playing the game, coming home and going to bed. No … it doesn’t work that way. You are so juiced up on adrenaline after a game that you are way too wired to go to bed.

In my late teens, my brother and I would come home from hockey practice at 1 am and sit in the kitchen making milkshakes and discussing the practice for another hour.  That’s a killer, for getting up in the morning.

A couple of years ago, I relented on my “no night hockey” policy because I had a chance to play with my son, Mike. The games were only at 9 pm but we weren’t getting to bed until after midnight. Morning came awfully early.

With this 6 am hockey now, somehow waking up at 5:15 am to get there isn’t that big a deal for me. It’s way easier than thinking about playing at nine at night.

This morning, for instance, I played and was home before 7:30 am. I had a full day ahead of me, though I did take a bit of a nap later in the morning.

I’ve gone full circle. I used to hate morning hockey and now I love it. And it’s all because of aging. It’s given me a new perspective on when to play hockey.

I talk to lots of people who are down on getting older. They warn me of the hazards and hindrances (I’ve even experienced some), but I’m trying not to look at my life from the perspective of when I was a young adult. My current perspective has opened up some new opportunities for me.

Here’s the thing:  As you age, you may not be willing to serve God the way you once did. Our tendency is to look at service from the perspective of the past and think we are done serving.  But with age comes a new perspective and that will open up new opportunities to serve God in ways you never before thought of as possibilities.

That’s life!

Paul

Question: How has your aging changed your perspective on what you do or how you serve God? Leave your comment below.

When You Know Life And Purpose Have Aligned

There is a sweetness when our life and purpose align. When life and purpose come together, there is something special that’s hard to put into words.

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Its an amazing feeling like being by a fireplace, sipping your favourite beverage and listening to good music – can you imagine that feeling?

This week Lily and I were at our District Pastors’ Retreat. Once a year, the pastors in our denomination get together in each district for a couple of days to be renewed and refreshed together. We go to be preached to, challenged, encouraged and sent out again.

It’s sort of for us, what we do each week of the year for others.  Lily and I look forward to these times together, and even view the drive to the retreat as special.

This year, it was just a little different. Lily and I went to prayer retreat with our daughter. Now, I think she was at one retreat when she was about 5 or 6 months old, but this year she came as a pastor.

It’s pretty special to have your daughter join you as a colleague, and not just your daughter, at a special work related event. She was there as a fellow worker in ministry.

Along with all my peers and pastor friends was my daughter, as one of them. She didn’t come as my child, but as a co-worker.

Every time I introduced her, I felt a sense of pride – a thankful pride. I had this warmth deep within me that spread to every part of my insides. And even though there was a sense that Karlie was now invading my territory, it was in a good way, a welcoming way.

It wasn’t all good though. There were some things about having our daughter along that didn’t make our pastors’ retreat easy for me. I think it started on our trip up. When we stopped for dinner, I was talked into eating a “wrappy pita thingy” … lots of lettuce, not much meat.

Our afternoon of strolling through the town of Huntsville didn’t really work for me. The shopping trip into town was against me. Now there were two people who wanted to shop in stores I had no interest in.

I couldn’t even hurry Lily up because she had a partner who also wanted to stay longer. I ended up by myself at the chocolate store. And I think I soothed my woes by purchasing a little more candy that I should have.

On the other hand, I didn’t feel so bad leaving my wife to shop in some Christmas store; she had Karlie to keep her company.

There was this “two against one” thing going on the whole retreat – I caved on a lot of things. Still the pride in my heart and the warmth in my spirit made it all worth it.

Here’s the thing: Think of God creating you with a purpose, then watching you grow and develop. He sees you choose right and wrong along the way, and cringes a little when you make some decisions to go in ways that lead you away from His purpose. Then He watches how you turn, or begin to get on the path of what He has created you for. Finally, God surveys life and purpose align with you serving Him, working alongside Him in the purpose He created you for. Well, I know how God feels. He’s proud of His creation!

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What do you wish for your children? Leave your comment below.

Are You Missing Out On A Christmas Event?

Christmas! How’d you like the sound of that word in mid November? Does it send shivers down your spine? Does it make your heart beat a little faster (in a good way, not a heart attack way)?

BestBuy shopping line

I had a little foretaste of Christmas this past weekend. It came completely out of the blue. There were no lights, decorations or canned Christmas music. But there was no mistake, this was a taste of Christmas to come.

My wife, Lily, had seen an ad for a product we wanted to get for one of our kids for Christmas (I can’t tell you for whom or I’d have to kill you). The product has to stay a mystery as well, but I will tell you that Best Buy was involved.

Lily noticed that this particular item was on sale, and rather than taking our chances closer to Christmas, she suggested we go and pick it up now.

“Christmas shopping on November 9, that’s crazy!” I thought. Then she suggested that I go and purchase it. Me, doing Christmas shopping in November? Doing Christmas shopping before mid December? There had to be a mistake.

But I had heard her correctly. So, off I went to wrestle me an early Christmas present. I pictured the store to be busy, people everywhere, pushing, shoving, trying to get the last item on the shelf.

But when I walked into Best Buy, it was all orderly, quiet, uncluttered by people or displays of merchandise. I thought to myself, “This has got to be the easiest Christmas shopping I’ve ever done!”

No pressure, no heavy coat, it was easy to get around the store. I thought, “Maybe I should start shopping early every year. What if I had all my Christmas shopping done by the end of November? … on second thought, it’s not going to happen.

Just as I was starting to feel good about my early Christmas shopping, I spotted a line of people. The farther I looked, the longer it got. I noticed that most of the people coming in the store were going directly into that line.

It was massive; the line of people curled around the length of the store. I wanted to avoid it in case there was something catching in that line. I stayed clear, but I kept my eye on it, in case it got closer to me.

I asked someone what was going on, and was told it was a video game exchange. She said something about bringing in two old games and getting some discount on a new one.

As I looked at the people in line out of the corner of my eye, it looked like they were in good cheer, like they were happy to be in that line. They seemed to be excited about what they were going to get.

I kind of felt like I was missing out, not part of it, like I was an observer and not a participant. It almost made me want to go home, grab a couple of old video games (my son’s, don’t tell him), and come back to join in on what everyone else was doing.

But I don’t like lines, and I probably wouldn’t like the video game anyway. Since I wasn’t motivated, I headed straight for the exit – good thing the cash line was empty.

Here’s the thing: Church should be a foretaste of heaven, with fellowship, joyful singing, gratefulness, connecting with God. If church isn’t a glimpse of heaven for you, are you participating in such a way to bring it about?

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What do you need to motivate you to make your church experience a foretaste of heaven? Leave your comment below.

Have You Made This Mistake In Completing A Project

Mistakes are common occurrences; I made a mistake the other day (oh, and I just made another one). Mistakes are the fuel of great discoveries, amazing breakthroughs, and huge successes.

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The key in making a mistake is to learn from it, use it to help point you in the right direction.

The other day, I looked out our back window and gazed at our back fence, where the lattice along the top of it had all been punched out the night before.

Back in the spring, one night some teens had walked by our property and punched a hole in our lattice . . . in 5 sections of it! It was rather disturbing. But when I went out to take a closer look, I was able to push the lattice back into place.

There were a few broken pieces, and it didn’t go back exactly like new, but it looked pretty good. So I left it. I figured I wasn’t going to fix it until school was out.

I didn’t want to immediately give those kids another target, and I didn’t want to give them the satisfaction that I had to fix it. In my mind, leaving the lattice sent the message that it really didn’t put me out.

Well summer came and went and I never got around to fixing my fence. Finally, the other day I knew it was time to replace the lattice because it got punched out again.

I couldn’t help being ticked off about having to do the work. I kind of wanted to get back at them.  You know, maybe booby trap the lattice, making it spring-loaded so if they punched it again, it would bounce right back in their faces. Or, maybe hide out and wait for them (maybe not). Or put a spy camera in my backyard to catch them.

I pictured them as angry teenagers, or maybe some tough karate kid who was showing off.

Then I started thinking back, trying to remember if I did stuff like that when I was a teen … and, yes, I did stupid things like that! I couldn’t think too poorly of them – they were much like me. I didn’t write myself off, so I shouldn’t write them off either.

I went to the store, found the lattice and purchased the five sheets I needed.

Back at the house, I gathered all my tools together, ladder, hammer, skill saw etc., and got to work. In one hour I had all five sections of lattice replaced. I stepped back and it looked good, and I thought, “Why didn’t I do this sooner? … like 5 months ago?!”

Not only does it look better to me and everyone else who walks by, but the new lattice is stronger, and it will be harder for someone to punch through again (they might need a green belt or something).

So far, I’ve been able to give my neighbour advice on fixing his lattice, there have been no more school dances – no punched in lattice … I’ll keep you posted.

Here’s the thing: When you have a question reading scripture, or from a sermon, or in a Bible Study, don’t put off seeking an answer to that question. Take time to dig deeper. Gather your tools: Bible, concordance, commentary, a book on the topic (most of these are available online).  You’ll resolve the issue, you will be stronger in your faith, and you’ll be able to help others.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What will it take for you to get working on that project or question that you have been putting off? Leave your comment below.