Author: Paul Silcock

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Our New Living Room Furniture Looks Odd

The other day we got a new living room couch and chair. My wife has been wanting these for some time. She has taken me to the store, showed me the design she likes, and the colour that fits the image in her head of what she wants our living room to look like.

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Since the time she first wanted to replace the furniture in our front room, there have been many other things that have taken precedence. So, even though it’s been in the works for a long time, it just hasn’t materialized.

We have had to replace vehicles, put a new roof on our house, bought a trailer … you know, all good things that, for one reason or other, we needed ahead of new living room furniture.

Our present couch is as old as our marriage – that would be 28 years this summer. I refuse to lie on it because, for many years, I would come home from work or Sunday service and fall asleep on that couch. When I woke up, I never felt rested. It was like the couch sucked the life out of me.

In the last few years, we have taken a few measures to firm up the coach … because a couch can only hold up so many rear ends before it starts to sag itself!

The other day, the store called and told Lily it had arrived. I was pretty excited to see it and told her that I would go in to make the final payment on it so we could get it home as soon as possible.

As soon as I had cleared up my work for the day, I drove as quickly as possible down to the store. I told the salesperson that I was anxious to see my new living room couch and chair. She looked at me like she didn’t have a clue what I was talking about. So I explained.

When Lily called me to tell me the living room furniture was in, she was referring to the new bike I had ordered that, once again, was taking precedence over the real furniture she has been patiently dreaming about for so long.

For the price of my new bike, she could have had her couch and chair. The salesperson chuckled and said, “Well technically, you can sit on it.” That’s true, but it only fits one person at a time. And frankly, Lily doesn’t really care if she ever gets a chance to sit on my bike.

Though outfitting our home with a new couch and chair would have been really nice, I had just broken the frame on my bike and, therefore, needed a new one just to keep up my exercising, let alone my enjoyment.

So when I got home with my new bike, all smiley-like, she looked at it, and grinned because she new I was happy. But behind that grin, I knew she was thinking that that could have been her couch and chair.

Maybe next year we can finally fulfill that dream of hers.

Here’s the thing: What we really want can get re-prioritized by others things and by other people. God wants first place in our hearts, but so often we push Him to the side because something else has taken precedence. The only way God will be first in your heart is if you purposely, and ruthlessly put Him there. Then protect His place from everything and everyone else.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What have you wanted that other things have taken precedence over? Leave your comment below.

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No, I Do Not Have A Notification Problem!

My sports apps are beginning to interfere with my work and my life. For some people, it is their addictions that interfere with their daily obligations; for me, it’s just my iPhone and iPad.

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On second thought, some people might think that I have an addiction to my sports apps if they are interfering with what I do for a living. But really, it’s not that I’m addicted, it’s just that I’m connected (denial is the first sign of addiction).

Whatever it is, I really need to get a handle on it. In church this Sunday, my iPad notified me of an NHL trade that was just signed. That’s not big deal, is it? Just one little notification that sounded like a bird’s whistle? There is no problem there.

So it happened in church … I wasn’t hurting anyone. However, I was preaching at the time, using my iPad. The sound might have carried over the mic a bit. But still, hardly anyone noticed, I think.

Later that same afternoon I was officiating a wedding, and just after I said, “Who gives Alex to be married to Josh?”, I got another notification. It was to inform me of the score of the Blue Jays / Red Sox baseball game.

But it was an outdoor wedding, and I wasn’t mic’d, and probably no one heard it. And even if they did, they probably thought it was a robin or a Blue Jay. No harm there; it went completely under everyone’s radar.

Later at the reception, I started receiving several notifications, one after another. It was the NHL Draft alerting me of who got the number one draft pick and who the Leafs picked up. But it didn’t cause a scene. The room was noisy and everyone was having a good time.

I really don’t think I have a problem. If my wife doesn’t think it’s appropriate, maybe it’s her that has the problem, not me.

It all started so innocently with me wanting to know how my teams were doing. My sports apps informed me that they could help. All I had to do was select the teams I wanted to follow and they would gladly push the notifications over to my phone.

I guess I never thought how many notifications I would get. I ended up getting way more than I thought. Maybe I am out of control, but maybe I just picked too many teams and all I need to do is cut back a little. I think I could do that.

Maybe if I choose some times that were off limits to being notified, that might make everyone happy. If say, Sunday mornings between ten and noon I refrained from notifications, even my wife would relax.

On the other hand, maybe I do need to revisit my sports apps’ notification and turn it off – period … to curb my notification habit.

Here’s the thing: There are many things in life we don’t consider a problem – things we enjoy, even things we think we benefit from. But if they get in the way of our relationship with Christ, or if they compete for our time with Christ, we need to stop the excuses and do something about it … and stop pretending there isn’t a problem when there clearly is.

That’s Life!

Paul

 

Question: What perfectly good thing can become a problem for you? Leave your comments below.

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Customer Service . . . I’d Like Some!

Customer service is a very important part of a business or any organization. In these days with social media, customer service is even more important. If someone is treated poorly and has lots of followers on Twitter and Facebook, a bad review of your product or organization could go viral quickly.

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So you would think companies would be mindful of listening to their customers, trying to understand them, instead of frustrating them to the point of outrage.

I found out that all depends on who you are dealing with. If you are talking to a customer service rep, they are on your side, trying to make it easy for you to get the result you are looking for.

However, if you are dealing with someone in, let’s say, the accounting department, they are more likely concerned that numbers match up in their books. They don’t care about your experience or how you feel. They feel good when they experience a ledger that looks neat and all balanced-like.

You might be able to see where this is going. That’s right, I had a customer service issue with our photocopier company at work and I was dealing with someone who really only cared about applying a credit to our account … a credit they should have sent to our old photocopier company to buy it out! I just finished writing a long letter to the company – maybe that should have been my blog today!

So, as I take an extra beta blocker this morning (just kidding) to keep my blood pressure in the earth’s atmosphere, I need to get a few things off my chest.

When dealing with a customer, listen to them. Hear not only their words but the emotion that’s behind the words. If you sense there is a frustration, don’t repeat what you have already done (and which failed) over and over again. It does NOT calm someone down!

When you have promised to take care of something for the customer and have not done so, don’t ask the customer to research and come up with a solution. Find a solution for them.

When a customer comes back to you with a solution, don’t tell the customer again what you have already done (and which failed). It doesn’t give the customer the sense that you are listening to them.

When you realize that the issue is something beyond you, don’t make the customer craft a letter to present their case to the people above your pay grade. YOU go to bat for them.

Finally when you realize that maybe, just maybe, your company dropped the ball (even a tiny bit), acknowledge it and tell the customer you are sorry, or they will feel you don’t care about your customers, and that might start something on Twitter or Facebook.

Here’s the thing: We often get upset with God’s customer service when He doesn’t answer us, or provide what we are looking for from Him, or even when we think “how could God let that happen”. But consider this … He is perfect and we aren’t. We’re the ones who have messed up and are in the wrong, yet He is still gracious, and patient and loving to us. Wow! That is great customer service.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What is your most frustrating customer service story? Leave your comment below.

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How To Avoid Multiple Bosses

I find that having an idea or plan of what you want to get done in your day is important, but scheduling that plan is crucial if it has a chance of happening.

Most days I have a plan and put it in my calendar with specific times to it. I do it so that someone else – even someone who walks in off the street – doesn’t become my boss for the day. And believe me, that can happen to me so easily!

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Saturdays are different. I do have a vague plan, but I rarely write it down. It’s really just a collection of things I would like to do in the day and in no particular order.

That lack of planning creates a bad scenario and that’s exactly what happened last Saturday. I got up, spent some time with God and wrote a blog. Those two things are pretty much a lock on Saturday mornings. I don’t have them written down somewhere, but as soon as I sit up in bed little neurons in my brain touch together which produce that end result.

When I was done, I looked outside, the sky was overcast, and I thought to myself, “It looks like it could rain at any time. I should go for a bike ride soon so that I don’t miss my opportunity.” I should have gone right then, but I wasn’t scheduled.

In no time, I kind of got sidetracked with other things I hadn’t planned on. By the time I finished those, my wife, Lily, announced she wanted to check out a new store downtown that friends had just opened. I could tell I needed to postpone my bike ride. Going to this store was something she really wanted to do, so I said, “Let’s go.”

We had a good time together checking out a new olive oil shop in town. I had no idea there were so many varieties of olive oil and vinegar. It was endless, but the raspberry vinegar was pretty amazing!

With visiting our friends’ store ticked off the list for the day, we just needed to swing by the bike shop, pick up a tube and then I could get home and get biking (my big plan for the day).

We had been in the bike shop for about 10 minutes when I looked outside and saw it was raining. The one thing I wanted to do that day wasn’t going to happen.

I had done other things: I wrote a blog, went to a store with Lily, fixed a flat tire on my bike, watched the hockey game, had wings for dinner, and worked on a computer issue for my mother-in-law. I did stuff, but for some reason because I didn’t go for a bike ride, I felt like I didn’t accomplish anything. My day was a disappointment.

Setting a time for that bike ride would have made the difference. It would have forced me to put times and time frames to the other things, and it probably would have gotten me on the trails and left me feeling like my day was a success.

Here’s the thing: When it comes to spending time with God or serving Him in some capacity, if we only plan on it but don’t schedule it, it probably won’t happen. And even if it does, it will be very hit and miss at best … you will have other bosses who’ll make sure of it.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: When is it a difficult task for you to schedule things? Leave your comment below.

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He Shoots, He Scores!

“Hello Canada, and hockey fans in the United States” … that’s the way Foster Hewitt would start the radio broadcasts of Hockey Night in Canada when I was a kid. We used to beetle out after church Sunday nights, grab the car keys from my dad and sit in our freezing car listening to the hockey game on the radio.

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That’s what you had to do to keep up with your team. But that was then. Now, staying on top of what your team is doing is a whole new ball game.

I just got something that takes all the effort out of tracking your team’s goals and it came just in time for the end of the playoffs. My wife and kids bought me a Budweiser red light for my birthday. For those who don’t know what that is, let me tell you about it.

In hockey arenas, at each end behind the nets and the boards, is a red light that turns on when a goal is scored. Along with the light, in most arenas, a horn also goes off to announce a goal.

Well that’s what my family got me. And if you’re thinking it’s just a nice souvenir, let me tell you, this puppy is a working, fully functioning red light. It’s connected to the internet and when my team scores a goal, the light and the horn (sounding like a fog horn) go off.

Lily was testing it out and turned down the volume of the horn. I just looked at her, and shook my head. That was all she needed to realize the volume on MY light only has one setting and that will be on max. And it was right about then she realized, she may have made a mistake in getting it for me.

The beauty about this red light is you can choose which team or teams you want it to work for. And yes, that’s right, you can choose all 30 teams if you want.

I can just picture myself settling into bed on a Saturday night, and having the horn and light go off because the Vancouver Canucks scored a goal on the west coast. That would be awesome (but I’m not choosing them).

I was pretty excited to try it out and, since it was near the end of the playoffs, I didn’t have many games left. So I selected both teams in the running – Boston and Chicago – just to make sure it would go off during the game. In the three previous games of the series, the two teams had scored a combined total of 12 goals.

I was hoping for a couple of goals to see it work. But what happened made my day. It was beyond my wildest dreams! Chicago and Boston combined for 11 goals in game 4; my red light was working like a Trojan! … And I loved it every time it went off.

Here’s the thing: The amazing thing about God is that He wants to hear from us. In fact, I would say He is excited when we speak to Him. We call it prayer, and it happens all the time, all over the world. And like when my light lights up and it brings a smile to my face, when we start to talk to God, He can’t help but be pleased. Keep talking to Him; it brings Him praise.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What brings a smile to your face every time? Leave your comment below.

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I Need an Electricity Plant in my Backyard

I wondered the other day if I’m getting a little too high-tech for my own good. Nothing wrong with high-tech but it requires a lot of electricity, and I’ve been noticing my dependence on it.

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Every day I have a laptop, an iPad and an iPhone with me, so you could say I’m fairly tech-oriented. All these gadgets need to be recharged, and the other day I had all three charging at the same time. If the power goes out at work, I’m good for as long as the batteries on my electronic devices hold up.

I have a system for charging that keeps my stuff working well. You can ask my kids, I have drilled it into their brains: you don’t charge your device until it is just about out of power; you don’t stop charging it until it’s fully charged; and when it’s done, you unplug.

My charging philosophy has done me well, and my daughter can attest to it. She has a 6 year old laptop and only now is the battery needing to be replaced.

If my use of high-tech tools stopped there, I would be nothing more than your average tech-savvy professional. But wait … I rely on a few more battery-powered devices to get me through my day.

I mentioned in a recent blog that I got a new weed trimmer. It’s cordless, runs on a battery, and the cool thing is I can use that battery with about 50 other products by the same company. I’m slowly working on getting them all (don’t tell Lily), but for now I have a cordless drill which can swap batteries with my whipper-snipper.

Isn’t that awesome? However, they need to be charged. They don’t run forever without being plugged in.

There’s even more. I have a cordless electric razor that needs to be reinvigorated with electricity and I have a blade razor/trimmer that requires a battery. To finish off my morning ritual of getting ready for the day, I use an electric toothbrush.

Yesterday was a big day for me tech-wise – maybe even a record. I had to charge my razor, all three of my computer devices, plus replace the battery in my pro-glide razor … and I think my toothbrush needs to be recharged.

Did you feel the power drain? Did the lights dim or flicker when you were getting ready for work? Don’t sweat it; it wasn’t a potential brown out across the eastern seaboard. It was just me plugging my high-tech stuff into an outlet.

There’s no end to my need for electricity and power. I have a bike computer that wirelessly calculates my distance, speed, and time all through the power of a little battery. And one more thing I almost forgot … There is a guy who has developed a hockey skate blade with a little heater in it that slightly warms the blade, giving you a little advantage on the ice. And ya, it needs a battery. And ya, I need a pair!

All I need now are solar panels on my roof and I’m set.

Here’s the thing: There are many things we can become dependent on, and if we lost the use of them, our life would be significantly altered. The key is to depend on something that we can’t be cut off from. How dependent are you on God?

Question: What have you become so dependent on that you couldn’t imagine doing without? Leave your comment below.

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They Turned Me Into One!

There are things in life that we pursue, create or proactively bring about. But there are also things in this life that just seem to happen to us without much intention on our part.

It’s the day after my birthday and I am feeling like something just happened to me that I never asked for nor set out to make happen: I’ve become a super fan.

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You know those guys that paint themselves up before the big game? They have and they wear the jersey of their favourite player (in both home and away colours). You can spot these super fans by the flag waving out their car windows, the bumper stickers plastered on their cars, the paraphernalia dangling from their rear mirrors, and by their golf accessories (I’ll explain).

It’s no secret that I’m a Toronto Maple Leafs’ fan – hey, I grew up there. I do have a few Leaf things in my possession. My office walls even have some Leaf memorabilia.

I have a picture and autograph on my wall of Darrel Sittler, one of my hockey heroes growing up. But nothing I have is overt. You would not be able to look at me and somehow tell that I’m a Leaf fan … not that I’m trying to hide it.

This year I broke down and bought a TML ball cap, but not one that stands out. It has their crest on the front but the colour of the hat is a blue grey and so it’s not really obvious.

I’ve never wanted to be a super fan and I don’t think anyone would ever accuse me of being one either … until now, and through no doing of my own.

It seems this year that my family took it upon themselves to turn me into a super fan, whether I like it or not. This year was one of those years when my birthday falls on Father’s Day. I think because it was a bonus day for me, they got a little carried away!

It started a year ago with my son getting me a bright blue Toronto Maple Leaf golf bag (no, it doesn’t really stand out). This year everyone got into the act. They got me a TML  golf umbrella to match my golf bag. And then for some reason, my wife, Lily got me a golf shirt that matches exactly the colour of the bag and umbrella (see the picture).

My son laughed and said he had thought of getting me Toronto Maple Leaf head covers for my clubs. It’s all a little too much for me – they’ve turned me into a super fan. Look for me the next time you’re golfing or even passing by a golf course. I won’t be hard to spot

There is one more thing that I got for my birthday that does make me a super fan but doesn’t show until you are in my family room – the “Budweiser Red Goal Light”. I can hardly wait until the Leafs score their first goal next season! … How do you spell, “super fan”?

Here’s the thing: God loves me so much that He did something so outrageous as to send His Son, Jesus, to die on the cross for me. He certainly didn’t hide His feelings for me, and so I should be proud to show that I’m a fan of Jesus and that I receive God’s love.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What are you a super fan of? Leave your comment below.

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I Never Thought I’d Like This

I find it interesting that you can trick yourself into liking something you don’t really like – in this case, something you don’t usually like doing. Recently, I bought a new weed trimmer.

This garden tool goes by several names, “weed-whacker”, “weed-eater”, “whipper-snipper”, and I’m sure there are a few more.

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Regardless of the name, they don’t really have anything to do with weeds. They are designed to trim the long strands of grass that grow along the edge of your lawn that your lawn mower can’t get.

Now, I don’t really like yard work. I cut the grass when it needs it, but while I’m cutting the front lawn, I keep looking at the basketball hoop in my driveway thinking, “It’d be nice to take some shots right now.” Funny thing is, it’s the only time I have that urge. When I’m done cutting the lawn I no longer have the desire to make a few hoops.

I can think of a million things I could be doing when I have to do yard work, and none of them include taking care of or maintaining anything growing around my property.

So it really surprised me the other day when I got my new cordless … we’ll call it “grass trimmer”, and was anxious to get out there and start using it. The really amazing thing was that not once did I have the urge to put it down and pick up a basketball.

My new trimmer is fantastic! I can push two buttons in and turn the bottom part so it can be used as a edger. I have never edged anything in my life so it came as a real revelation that edging really makes your lawn look good.

When I was all finished I went in the house and looked out the window at how stunning my walkway looked leading up to our front door.

I used my knew toy . . . err . . . a . . . I mean, tool to trim both front and back yards and the battery didn’t die before I was done. It normally takes me about 25 to 30 minutes to cut my lawn, front and back. And usually I can’t wait to get back to doing pretty much anything else.

I even got out my leaf blower afterwards to blow away the grass that blew onto the cement walk and the driveway just so that it looked neat and showed off my trim work.

The only thing that I am concerned about is how long my new found infatuation will last.  This baby is new but how will I feel about using it when it’s another week old or in three months?

By the end of the summer will I be wishing the battery isn’t charged so I don’t have to get out there and trim? Will I be looking longingly over at my basketball hoop and accidentally cut the tops off my wife’s flowers?  I don’t know.

But I do know that my wife, Lily is happy right now and I’m liking the look of my lawn.

Here’s the thing: Sometimes a fresh look at something can give us new inspiration or cause us to find new meaning. Whether it’s a familiar Bible passage, or an old problem, or whether it is God Himself, take a fresh approach and you might be surprised to find something you really like.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What have you found a new enjoyment or appreciation for? Leave your question below.

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He Wouldn’t Stay on the Cart Path

You don’t usually receive much bruising from playing golf … “maybe get a blister on your little finger, maybe get a blister on your thumb”, as Mark Knopfler of Dire Staits might say.

But this past week, I was golfing with my son and I found out that golf can be a contact sport after all. I don’t normally use a golf cart but we were in a tournament and carts were provided.

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I arrived late, and my son, Mike, already had his golf bag on the cart behind the driver’s seat … I was relegated to being a crash test dummy in the seat beside him! At first I thought nothing of it – though his starts were a little fast, he was getting us to where we needed to go.

After a few holes, however, it started to rain and got a little chilly which, for some reason, impacted his driving quality. It may have been the rain drops on the windscreen that made the terrain difficult to see, or maybe it was that he was cold and didn’t have his hand fully on the steering wheel, but let’s just say the ride got a little rough for the last 14 holes.

About 12 years ago, he was driving a golf cart with my dad as the passenger and at one point Mike almost threw his grandfather out of the cart! The words “Wow, wow, wow, Mikey boy!” are etched in my memory as I watched my dad hang on for dear life while Mike had the cart on two wheels.

We even had a deja-vu moment the other day when Mike said “ Hey, that was like the time I almost tossed Grandpa out of the cart.” Obviously, it was a memory that has stuck with Mike too … not that it has impacted his driving habits over the years.

With the rain coming down, we had stuck an umbrella in one of the bags to keep the clubs dry while we were driving. That required someone to hold the umbrella in place and keep it from becoming like one of those parachute-stopping devices on drag cars.

While I was half turned and holding the umbrella with one hand, Mike drove the cart right through a hole, which jolted ligaments in my shoulder. I asked him if he saw that hole and his reply was he thought he could miss it between the wheels.

He just slightly misjudged and in the process caused me to hit my head on the roof! At one point, I thought I was in the Fast and Furious movie, “Tokyo Drift” when we swung around to pick up a ball one of the guys had left behind.

It reminded me of the first time he drove a go cart by himself. He got in front of me and was so impressed with himself, he looked back at me with a big grin and then proceeded to miss the next turn and cut right across the grass, bumping along until he got back on the track.

In the end, we made it back to the club house in one piece. We scored pretty well in the four man best ball tournament and each took home a new Callaway driver as first place prizes! … I just hope Mike’s driving on the road is a little better than his driving on the fairway

Here’s the thing: There is nothing better than being in the passenger seat when God is driving. When you let Him lead, it might be a wild ride at times but it will be exciting and filled with adventure.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What has been your most exhilarating experience? Leave your comment below.

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Three Cheers for My Team!

Sometimes you just have to brag about your team. Sometimes they need to get a little recognition. It doesn’t have to be much, just something to get people to notice.

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When hockey players score a goal, the fans erupt, the players raise their sticks in the air, and they get a few hugs from the boys on the line. When a race car driver wins a race, he does a victory lap to the cheers and waves of the crowd, then finishes off by doing a few donuts in front of the grandstand.

They do it for a few reasons: They’re excited that they did something great. They just want to celebrate. They’re making a statement, “Look what I just did; aren’t I great?”

It’s bragging in an acceptable way. No one likes the guy that tells you what he did and how awesome he is for doing it. But if he does a backflip in the end zone after scoring a touchdown, we do think he’s great.

There are some things, however, that you can’t really high five or get all snuggly-in-a-group-hug over. So what do you do? How do you celebrate those accomplishments that defy any kind of real emotional explosion?

I don’t know the answer to that, so I’m writing a blog about it. My church did something amazing that probably many are unaware of.

It didn’t happen with everyone watching. It wasn’t one heroic act. Rather, it was several little acts that the people in my church did last Sunday that together is a really BIG DEAL!

Last Sunday we had a presentation in church about World Vision. Afterwards, the guy that gave the presentation had a table in the foyer for people to stop by. On the table were photo cards of children who could be sponsored for about $40 per month.

To most people that’s not a lot of money, because they drink coffee. You see, they usually tell you how inexpensive it is to sponsor a child by comparing the cost to a number of coffees at Tim Horton’s.

It works out to be less than one coffee a day to sponsor a child. Since I don’t drink coffee, that’s just forty bucks straight out of my pocket, but for most people its just doing without that third cup of the day.

Any way, my church sponsored 18 children last Sunday morning! What’s more is that the last time this World Vision rep visited our church about 5 years ago, we sponsored 22 kids!

You might think that doesn’t sound like much, but let me tell you, the guy couldn’t believe it. He said for a church our size, it would be a big number if we had sponsored half that many!

The last time he was here, World Vision was so amazed, they called him to make sure he got his numbers right!

All I know is this Sunday in church we should be high-fiving each other, giving out hugs and maybe a few back flips down the center aisle. WAY TO GO, KAC! – you have a huge heart for the disadvantaged in the world!

Think of it like we scored a goal. Just don’t ask me to do the back flip – I’ve got a bad knee.

Here’s the thing: Sometimes we don’t get noticed for doing things that are important. Know this – it never goes unnoticed by God. He sees even the smallest thing you do for your brother or sister.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What would you like to celebrate that doesn’t usually get noticed? Leave your comment below.