family

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Why You Get Springtime Colds

There’s nothing worse than a springtime cold – partly because you’re not supposed to get a cold when the weather is warm (or just “warmer” this spring).

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Colds are for the dead of winter when it’s nasty outside, -30 and everyone is trapped inside to spread their germs around like kids trading hockey cards in Johnny’s basement.

But I could see this one coming on. I could have predicted it. I let myself get run-down and then put myself in situations where I could easily catch what someone else was trying to get rid of.

I had a couple of late nights and then a trip to Toronto and back the same night. The next morning I had to be up for a seven o’clock meeting, so I only got a few hours of sleep.

I knew right then I was vulnerable. My office is rather frigid at this “in between seasons” time of year, so I was also a little chilled during the day.

Then on the weekend, at a family get together, there were several who were fighting off colds and other bugs, and Sunday I shook a lot of hands at church, hands that are filled with germs.

Monday I started sneezing and blowing my nose. I don’t think I’ve ever sneezed as much as I have this week. I would say for the first four days I must have sneezed about thirty times each day.

I normally sneeze in two’s. My brother’s sneeze pattern is about 4 or 5 in a row. This week I was sneezing like my brother, multiple sneezes almost every time.

Friday morning I woke up with a sore throat and I worried that I wouldn’t have a voice to preach on Sunday. I know my congregation prays for me … I’m just hoping they’re praying that I have a voice and not the other way around!

The last two days I really haven’t felt all that great. But this morning, after a very restless night, I thought playing hockey would be the ticket to get me feeling better.

There was no sore throat when I got up so I put on an extra sweatshirt and let my pores push all those bad bugs out of me while I sweat. I wrote about this method in my blog “Guaranteed To Cure The Common Cold” (you can read it here).

This is not the time of year to be having a lingering cold. It’s no fun BBQ-ing and not being able to taste the Montreal Steak Spice on your steak, or being able to smell the fresh breeze while you’re outside doing yard work.

No one wants to be looking out the window at the green grass, budding trees and feeling too lousy to get out there to do anything.

It’s a different story in the middle of the winter with the snow piled up to the window sills and the wind howling at the front door. When it’s like that you’re almost glad you don’t feel like going outside.

I guess I better pay closer attention to the needs of my body.

Here’s the Thing: Like a springtime cold, when you find yourself in a situation when you think, “This shouldn’t be happening to me”, take time to dissect it. God may be trying to teach you through your experience. Don’t just accept it without seeking to find what God wants you to learn from it.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What have you learned from a situation you didn’t think you should be in? I’d really like to hear from you. You can leave a message below.

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How To Get Moving On Spring Cleaning

You know it’s spring when you get invited to sweep out your garage. The other day my wife informed me that she was going out to sweep all the dirt and grit from the winter out of our garage.

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I knew right away that this information was intel that I was to gather for a secret mission that was coming up – specifically the mission was to come on out and help her sweep.

I pretended that I was still gathering data on the subject to delay my decision, but after a few minutes I decided to at least check up on the operation in the garage.

Just as I thought, she was doing a great job. But the work had halted because she was talking to our neighbour. That’s one of the problems with working outside in the spring – everyone’s outside.

To make it worse, we haven’t seen them or talked to them much because all winter we drive right into our garage and go in the house. Now that the weather is sort of, thinking about turning warmer, people are outside and we have to catch up.

That makes tasks like sweeping out the garage take twice as long. I had joined the conversation but when we were done I grabbed the other broom and started sweeping with Lily.

Of course I wasn’t doing it quite the way she likes it done. Apparently the broom I was using creates a little more dust in the air than her broom. Or was it the technique that she used that kept the dust from forming clouds in the air? I’m not sure.

Once we settled that dust issue, however, we really were working like a machine. I wouldn’t say I would eat off the garage floor but it was looking pretty clean.

That’s not to say that there won’t be other missions out to the garage to clean and put things away. I noticed that we have a mission to the dump coming up soon.

This operation will have to take place in the next few days and it will involve our son who has a large vehicle this week. I’m just concerned that our communications have some outside interference (his friends) and we may miss the target unless we move in quickly.

All these covert operations that are signs that spring is upon us gave me a desire to try an overt operation. I’ve been waiting to do this for a while now.

I took my bike rack that I got for Christmas and mounted it on the roof of my car. There was no camouflaging this from aerial surveillance or from ground recon work.

The rack is in plain view and is a clear signal to all that spring is here, even though we need the temperature to warm up a bit to feel like it’s spring.

Here’s the thing: Having a quiet time with God is so important because though it is more of a covert action – something that no one else really sees – it is something that prepares you for what lies ahead. You will be far more prepared to face the challenges and opportunities that will come if you have prepared your heart with God first, in your private time with Him.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question:  What do you have to clean up that won’t be noticed too much but will make a big difference just the same? I’d love to hear from you. You can leave a comment below.

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Having Trouble Deciding On A Movie?

Sometimes I wonder how compatible my wife and I really are. In lots of areas we fit together well, but when it comes to movie selection we are opposites.

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For instance, last night we thought of going to the theatre, but the one movie out of umpteen choices that we could agree upon was going to start too late for Lily’s liking. The alternative was to rent a movie at home.

I went to work at finding something that I liked and Lil might be able to tolerate but after about a half hour of watching trailers I kind of gave up. I’d seen several that I would rent in a flash but not with Lily.

We are so opposite that way. She likes romantic movies that are also a little funny … and you know those movies are found under the genre of “Sappy”.

I, on the other hand, like movies that are mostly action. My motto is if nothing’s going to get blown up and no one’s going to get shot at, it’s really not worth seeing.

There is one tiny area that we have in common: we both like movies that have some comedy in them.

I don’t really like straight comedies because they tend to also be very stupid movies. And I know it’s not nice to use the word “stupid” any more, so instead I’ll just say, Jim Carrey, Will Ferrell, Seth Rogen. I could use more words, but I’m sure you get the picture.

Lily feels the same way, so we look for movies that are funny but not ridiculous.

So when Lily looks for a movie we can watch together she looks for something romantic and a little funny. When I look for a movie to watch with her it’s an action movie that has some funny lines in it. That’s the best we can do.

Last night I found nothing matching our criteria. Quite frankly, they don’t make many movies in those categories.

I figure the movie industry must do a lot of polling to find out what people like to watch, and if they’re not making many advent-edies or rom-edies, then there must be something wrong with Lily and I.

Either that or the movie industry has a secret plan to break up marriages. You know that’s not a far-fetched theory when you think of the content out there that’s degrading and damaging to marriage … maybe there’s something there for the conspiracy theorists to work on.

That still doesn’t help my problem when I want to go to the theatre or stay at home and watch a movie with my wife. It doesn’t help us feel compatible either.

I’m not sure how we are going to solve this dilemma, but last night Lily got busy working on a project and I . . . well, I watched a movie that had some pretty big explosions in it.

Here’s the thing: In a small group setting we look at the same Bible passage and glean from it together. But there are areas of your life that need specific and personal application. Don’t neglect a personal time with God, just because you study the Bible with others. You need both.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: How have you neglected personal growth because you focussed on group input?  I’d love to hear from you. You can leave your comment below.

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How To Delegate Responsibility To Your Children

You know the saying, “If you give a man a fish you feed him for a day; if you teach a man to fish you feed him for a life time”? I think I may have just taught my daughter to fish.

income tax help

I don’t really mean she’s become a fisherman, or fisherwoman, or even a fisher person. I mean that I think I’ve just taught my daughter to do her own income tax.

When your children grow up, you look back on those key moments in their lives where you are proud of their accomplishments and think, “Wow, we’ve just come through a milestone.”

… Things like their first step, learning to tie their shoes, getting their driver’s license, graduating from university, and learning to complete their own tax returns.

I need to pause for a moment . . . haaaaa . . . my little girl is all grown up now.

There is a method that one should use in teaching someone else something. Normally you first show them the tax form so they know what it looks like. Then you show them their completed form so they know there’s some work involved.

The next step is to have them watch you do it, and ask questions along the way. And finally, you watch them do it, and then hand them their income tax file from previous years and say, “It’s all your responsibility now.”

Well, I just did all that in one year, one day, actually in a couple of hours. I’m not sure it will all stick, but I think she’s got the basics so that I may only get a phone call or two next year, if her fishing line gets caught on the rocks … I mean if she runs into a snag.

The one thing I’m a little worried about is that she will approach income tax with the same dread and disdain that I do. She’s heard my frustration, she’s felt the chill in the basement when I’m working on it and she knew to stay clear of dad.

It’s no secret I don’t like income tax season. I wrote about it in a blog last year called, “The Season I Hate The Most”. You can read that one here.

I hope my attitude doesn’t rub off on her. Maybe I should change my attitude, but I’ve been doing income taxes for myself and my family for way over 30 years. That’s not an easy attitude adjustment to make.

I wouldn’t say tax season comes as a surprise to me each spring, but It’s funny how this attitude arrives every year at this time. It’s not that funny, however. It’s only funny like hitting your funny bone (a sharp pain that lingers for a while).

One thing I know, this is the first year Karlie is getting a big refund, and she’s all excited about income tax for the first time in her life. Here’s hoping that attitude continues.

Here’s the Thing: When we’re young we lean on our parents for our spiritual base. We follow their influence or tradition, even their approach to spiritual things and faith. In essence, we let them do all our spiritual work. But we have to take responsibility for our own spiritual lives. We have to go from leaning on our parents, to having a personal relationship with God. If we don’t, we will always be relying on a parent, a pastor, or someone to feed us spiritually.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What have you done to take responsibility for your spiritual life?

I’d love to hear from you; you can leave a comment below.

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Who To Deal With When Making A Purchase

The other day I needed to buy a present for my wife’s birthday. It was coming up soon – the next day, in fact – and there wasn’t much time left.

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All Lily wanted was end tables for the living room. I went straight to the Hudson’s Bay Company because it was close by, and they had living room furniture.

I found two different styles right away. One set was clearly on sale – that had my attention and interest. The other one I liked more, but the price was not to my liking.

It was just about then that a man in a suit came up to me and asked if he could help. We chatted for a moment and I inquired if the sale extended to the other style of end table. He did a quick check and, sure enough, it was on sale as well. My interest started to peak.

He said he could have the salesman pack it up for me, right then if I’d like, and I could take it home immediately. Those were magic words to me! I said, “Let’s do it.”

I left to move my car to the store entrance. When I returned, I noticed a picture of a man just inside the door who looked a lot like the man in the suit.

A salesman was waiting for me when I got to the furniture department. We sat down to do business but he didn’t seem all that happy about making the sale.

I mentioned that the man in the suit had said we could order in a new end table, and make an exchange later. That’s when I found out why the salesman wasn’t as excited about my purchase as I was.

He told me he was doubtful he could do that. A month ago a woman had ordered the same end table and there was still no sign of it coming in yet. He also said he didn’t like selling his floor models, because then he didn’t have anything to show people.

I thought to myself, “You have trouble ordering stuff in, but you don’t like selling floor models. What business are you in anyway?”

Instead, I asked him, “Then how come you’re selling this to me?” He answered, “You were dealing with the store manager.”

I joked, “So this is all his fault?” “Yes,” he said, “and if that woman who ordered this end table comes back, she will be mad when she finds this one gone.”

I smiled and said, “Just send her over to the store manager to explain.”

I got the impression this salesman was more interested in having his department filled with nice furniture arrangements than he was in selling anything in the store.

As I drove home I wondered if the store manager knew he had an employee who was not as eager to sell his merchandise as he was.

Here’s the thing: We just celebrated Easter – the greatest day of the year, because that is the day Jesus rose from the grave, having paid for the sins of the world. Jesus now offers to apply His payment to your sins, and your friends’ sins. If you’ve had your sins paid for by Jesus, then don’t be like that salesman who likes his store the way it is. Be like the store manager who is interested in letting others have what he has. Let others know they can have their sins paid for, too.

That’s life!

Paul

Question:  Have you found you are more inclined to keep your relationship with Christ more to yourself?

I’d love to hear from you; you can leave your comment below.

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How To Determine If You Should See The Movie “Noah”

I’ve read about Noah in the Bible many, many times. Like thousands and thousands of other people, I know the story inside out.

Noah Flannel graph

This week I saw the movie, “Noah” in the theatre. To be honest, I didn’t read any of the hype, nor any of the reviews before I saw the movie. I simply went to see the movie of a script I knew very, very well.

After seeing the movie, I’m happy to report that there is a character named Noah, there is a flood and an ark (a very large boat). But the movie is not about the Noah that I’ve read about, nor does it have anything to do with God or the Bible.

There are people who have written all kinds of reviews on this movie. You could read a review or two if you want, but I would suggest you just read Genesis 6-9.

Read it a few times – it won’t take you the 139 minutes it takes to watch the movie (plus the previews and waiting in line for popcorn). As an added bonus, and just to get your math down on who lived when, you could read Genesis 5 as well.

That’s a really good start if you are interested in seeing the movie because, after reading the Biblical account of Noah, you will be able to view this movie without confusion. It’s clear that it’s not taken from the Bible.

I’m not saying that’s a bad thing; I’ve seen movies that aren’t from the Bible. I can’t recall any reference in the scripture to “Jason Bourne” or “Blackbrier” of the Bourne trilogy of movies, and I’m okay with that.

I saw the Lord of Rings series and I may even go see the Captain America movie that’s coming out soon. Those movies are entertaining; not enlightening; not revealing truth. And I don’t expect them to be any of that either.

For me, if I want enlightenment and truth I read the Bible. When I want to be entertained, I may watch a movie.

This was not a bad movie to watch. However, it is violent in places, and I still have a few marks on my hand where my wife dug in her nails.

There are some amazing rock creatures that help Noah build the ark. I’m sure they cut his workload and time down by about 60% … these guys had six arms!

If you haven’t seen the movie and are wondering if you should, consider your motives for seeing the movie first.

See it for entertainment only. If you want to get some visual depiction of the story in Genesis, then don’t see the movie. Instead purchase some flannel, some paper cut-out Bible figures, and an easel from a craft story. Then have someone read Genesis 6-9 and you work the flannel graph.

Here’s the thing: Everything you watch, hear and read has a slant to it. Someone has put their own thoughts, ideas, interpretation to it. But God has given us the Bible. Yes, it was written over 2,000 years ago and has 40 authors. But it was written under the inspiration of God the Holy Spirit.  2 Timothy 3:16 says it was “breathed out by God”. God has made sure that we have what He wants us to have in the scriptures: His truth, the truth.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: Will you see the movie? Why or why not? If you have, what are your thoughts on it?

I’d love to hear from you; leave your comment below.

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Why Fans Aren’t Worth Much – Part 2

In my last blog (click to read), I compared sports fans to recycle trash. Team owners and players consider fans to be more valuable than trash, but not much more.

Leaf fans

Just like we treat recycle items a little better than regular garbage, fans are treated likewise. The bottom line, however, is they’re still trash.

Some of you have been wondering when I was going to show my colours and now’s the time.  I’ve been a Toronto Maple Leaf fan for most of my life. I grew up in Toronto, so the team is engrained deep within me.

I was 11 years old when Toronto last won the Stanley cup in 1967. I’ll be 58 this year.

My kids, now in their 20’s, have never witnessed the Leafs win the cup. They’ve never seen them win the conference finals. But they have observed the Leafs missing the playoffs 12 times in the past 25 years. That’s half the time if you’re counting (excluding the 04/05 lock out year).

Last year the Leafs made the playoffs for the first time in 8 years. They did great, almost dumping the future Stanley Cup champions to the curb in the first round.

Fans had high hopes, and were in full support of this team. This year looked promising; the team was solid. They were playoff-bound right through until after the Olympic break.

There have been a couple of injuries since then that have hurt them, but that’s not the real problem. Sure Reimer let in 19 goals in five games, but Bernier has let in 12 in the last 3 games. Goaltending is not the issue.

The problem is morale. The Leafs are not playing like they did before the break. There’s no urgency in their game. No desire to win. They have no drive to make the playoffs this year.

What there is is a great deal of unrest in that organization right now. How this unrest surfaces is in treating the fans like they are recycle garbage.

While the team is fighting it out amongst each other or with the coaches in the dressing room, every night on the ice they are just taking the blue box to the curb for pick up the next morning.

Toronto should be the cleanest city in the world; they have the garbage picked up about three times a week!

Someone needs to shake everyone in that organization and get them looking at what’s really important. It’s not who’s being treated poorly, or who’s right or wrong. It’s the fans! Treat them like they belong in the house and not in a recycle bin on the side of the street!

Someone on the team needs to say, “Let’s give these fans what they want. Let’s forget our beefs while we are on the ice. Let’s remember the fans are still supporting us, the product.”

You don’t put the Cheerios box in the recycle bin when there are still Cheerios in it. The team needs to rally around the fans for the fans. Sports fans are the team’s most valuable resource.

My beef and my rant is about my team the Toronto Maple Leafs. But listen, your team is just one internal argument away from treating you as recycle trash, too.

Here’s the thing: When our morale is low, often we treat God like recycle trash. We ignore Him to focus on our issues. We blame Him for the state we are in. Instead, seek His support and encouragement and help. God is your most valuable resource.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: How can you make God your most valuable resource?

I’d love to hear from you; you can leave a comment below.

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When Your Son’s Life Parallels Yours

My son turned 23 the other day, and what stood out to me is just how much his life has paralleled mine so far.

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I thought for a moment that I had a “do-over” in him. And I wondered if a lot of parents think that … they see their son or daughter as a way to correct or change their own path. In some cases, they see their children as a way to fulfill a long-lost dream.

I didn’t dwell on that very long because I realized that he has some living ahead of him that I have no desire to do over.

When I look back, I don’t want to have to finish my education, or decide on a career, or choose a mate, or a number of other things. No, that’s for Mike to go through. All I can do, or want to do, is be a sounding board for him in all those things.

But still, it’s hard not to dream for him and want to make decisions for him when I see him having to make the same decisions and going through the same circumstances as I did.

There are times I want to shout out, “Choose this”, or “Do that and you will save yourself time and pain”.

But that would be cheating him out of figuring out life. That would be keeping him from growing up. That would be preventing him from becoming himself instead of a do-over of dad.

Besides, when we’re 23 there’s something inside us that compels us to experience things for ourselves and not take the advice of the wise sage.

We went out for dinner to celebrate this occasion. And there was a young family who sat at a table across from us: a mom, a dad and a daughter about 6 years old. I looked back at my family, all adults now, and flashed back to remember days long ago when my children were young

How often I have said, “Wow, he’s a lot like me in the way he thinks and the things he does, the choices he makes. Even his physical development parallels mine.”

Mike laughs at me and calls me a fatty. But I look at him, knowing my physique was identical at his age and say, “This is all yours in thirty five years!”

I never had this conversation with my dad, but I know there were lots of parallels between us, too.

Back at home to open presents after dinner, the last present he opened was a new 3 wood. I could see the excitement in his eyes, the longing to get on the golf course and play.

That’s something that he has become passionate about through his friends. It’s also with his friends that he has developed his ability. Though I share the same love for the game, he didn’t catch the bug from me.

But even in that, he parallels my life: picking up the game from a friend and being mentored in golf by him.

What’s good is we can play together and maybe this will be the year he finally beats me.

Here’s the thing:  A relationship with God is personal and though it may look like your journey to God parallels someone else’s, each relationship with God is unique. You can’t replicate your relationship with God in someone else. However, you can fellowship together in your relationships with God.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: In what ways has your life paralleled someone else’s?

I would love to hear from you. You can leave your comment below.

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Why Your Past Can’t Really Catch Up To You

We turned back time in our house this past week. We’ve gone back to using a dishwasher instead of washing our dishes by hand.

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And right now you are thinking, “Wait a minute. That’s not going back in time; that’s catching up to the present!” I would agree with you, however, our journey to using a dishwasher has a few twists and turns to it.

Back in the good old days – you know, those days that were never really as good as we think they were – well, back in those days, when Lil and I were first married, we did everything by hand.

As I recall, we even washed our clothes by hand. We didn’t really, but when my kids have kids, I’m going to say we did … and I’ll be so old by then everyone will believe me!

At the very least, we washed our dishes by hand. We pretty much followed this archaic method of cleaning soiled plates and cutlery for years. That is until we moved to Kingston.

That’s when we got a dishwasher. Oh, life was modern then. It seemed like the good life had arrived. Modern appliances would run things for us and we wouldn’t have to do any work around the house at all. Life was grand.

For seventeen years we lived in this blissful state; not a care in the world. It was even magical how the clean dishes reappeared in the cupboards and drawers.

But one sad day – it may have been “the day the music died” (American Pie) – life changed around our happy home. The dishwasher died. It stopped working; it was kaput.

I found myself washing dishes again, like the good old days. Remember them? I wrote about this in a blog last year, “Whatever You Do, Don’t Fix It” (Feb. 23, 2013).

I was getting used to washing dishes with my wife. I can’t say I enjoyed it, but I got pretty efficient at drying the various items, except for plastic. I don’t like drying anything plastic, including bags, especially bags!

One day, about six months ago, my son said he had a new dishwasher for us. I thought at first he was moving back home. But no, his friend’s father got a new dishwasher and they wondered if we wanted their old one. Mike said he and his friend would even install it for us.

I said no. Crazy, right? But I knew what would happen. It would sit in our garage for six months and then I would end up having to install it.

Well, deja vu! I just installed the washer this week, six months after it arrived in our garage with great promises.

So we are back to the modern life, the blissful happy home I once recalled. Life couldn’t be more simple, easy, fun. Though it’s louder in our house now – the blasted dishwasher makes a lot of noise and it doesn’t wash the big pots and pans.

… I’m still on towel duty, just like the good old days.

Here’s the thing: We may have had some significant Christian experience in the past. We may even keep looking back to that experience and claim it like it is current or reoccurring. But we need to have new and fresh experiences with God. We need to leave the good old days in the past.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What old experience has you looking to the past rather than for something fresh?

I’d love to hear from you on this. Leave your comment below.

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How Driving Around Potholes Is Good For You

I’ve never been into monster truck racing, but lately I kind of wish I owned one. In the aftermath of winter – not that I’m saying it’s over, but it better be – I need to be driving something a little more substantial than my Hyundai Accent.

potholes

The road conditions in my town are like a war zone. My apologies to those who actually live in war zones; I’m sure it’s nothing like it. But from my perspective, I’m dodging bomb craters every few minutes.

It’s our crazy winter that has created these conditions, and if the city doesn’t soon get the road crews out there fixing the potholes, the mechanics in my town will be rubbing their hands together with sinister smiles on their faces. I think my car might already need new shocks or something.

I feel like a rally driver bobbing and weaving around land minds that want to take my car out. I’m not even using the double lanes to pass cars any more. I need that other lane just to get around the missing pavement so I don’t have to drive into oncoming traffic.

I’m sure in other Canadian cities the state of the roads are the same as they are here. … Now I’m starting to worry about an asphalt shortage!

I’m not sure that it’s even possible for us to have an asphalt shortage but I can see the construction companies starting some rumours to drive up the prices. We’ll all be paying for that if it happens.

I’m also predicting a tax increase this year. The bill for road work is going to be astronomical and I’m afraid it will take them until next winter before they make all the repairs that need to be done.

When I was a kid winters were harsher, but the roads seemed to last longer. Maybe they are skimping on the base of the roads. Is it possible that they are using cheap crushed stone from China under our roads? Maybe that’s why our roads aren’t holding up as they should be.

I’m in favour of starting a “buy Canadian gravel” campaign if it will help us drive on smooth pavement.

It could be that they are using a thinner layer of asphalt. They should lay that stuff down as thick as they do for airport runways. Those planes weigh tons more than my little car but those airstrips seem to last and last.

One area that is holding up are the speed bumps they put on some roads to encourage slower speeds. I haven’t seen any missing sections in them. I have, however, been secretly wishing the snow ploughs would push them off to the side with the snow.

No one would notice in the winter. Not until the snow melted would anyone see the piles of black top on the side of the road. They wouldn’t be able to replace them either with all the work they have to do filling potholes all over the city; there’d be no time.

Well, here’s hoping my vehicle will make it on another rally car race to work this morning!

Here’s the thing: In life there will be potholes. We can complain about them; we can blame others; and we can blame God. We can ask God to fill them, but most likely He will help us and guide us around them. We just need to stay alert to God’s direction in our life.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What are the road conditions like in your city, in your life?

I would love to hear from you; you can leave your comment below.