autumn

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Today Is Special; Everything Changes Tomorrow

Today (November 19th) is a special day; tomorrow everything is supposed to change.

… I remember the day before we had our first child … life was so different. Everything changed the next day.

Life was just Lily and I. The next day when Karlie arrived everything about life was different – what we thought about, how we approached our day, how we made plans.

I remember going to the mall the day before our daughter came on the scene. It was a spur of the moment decision; we just left the house, got in the car and drove to the mall.

I remember going to the mall after Karlie was born. When we wanted to go, we couldn’t because Karlie was napping. Then when she woke up she needed to be fed. We packed a bag and finally got her ready, but just before we were to leave she needed changing.

I almost threw my hands up and said, “Forget it! It’s not worth it; it’s too much work.”

One day changed going to the mall into a whole new experience.

Today we are on the cusp of that kind of day. Tomorrow we are supposed to get snow for the first time this year – and it’s supposed to be significant.

Today, however, it’s sunny and plus 16°C. I’ve already played hockey this morning and got in my exercise for the day.

But this is most likely the last day of the year I will be able to go biking. Everything changes tomorrow.

After today, I will need a fat bike to ride the trails at my club … and I’m pretty sure Lily isn’t convinced that I need to spend $1200 – $1500 on a fat bike just so I can keep riding in the winter.

So this is my last chance to take my bike out. It will be 4 1/2 – 5 months before I ride again.

That’s the thing – tomorrow brings such an abrupt change. It’s not slow or gradual; it’s all of a sudden.

… When I was in grade 4, all my stories started that way. I would write, “All of a sudden” at the top of the page and then continue with some action.

My teacher responded the same way to all those stories by giving me another “C”. It was a predicable mark, not all of a sudden. For some reason, she wanted me to develop the plot before I got to the “all of a sudden”.

As I sit here planning my day, all I can think about is the “all of a sudden” snow we are supposed to get tomorrow.

Today I need to go for that bike ride, put up the Christmas lights, and apparently I need to wash our new car because I’m told it looks dirty.

Well, tomorrow it won’t matter how clean the car is today. Tomorrow it will be dirty. And I’m sure there will be some mild temperatures in the next few weeks for me to put up the Christmas lights.

But it’s today or never for that last bike ride. I think I need to escalate it to the top of today’s list.

Here’s the thing: Christ’s return will be one of those “all of a sudden” stories. It will be the day everything changes. We need to do something today so that we are okay when everything changes, when “all of a sudden” happens. Be sure you’re right with God by placing your faith in His Son, Jesus Christ.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What would you do if you knew everything was changing tomorrow? Leave your comments below.

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What Fall And Taxes Have In Common

Well, it’s late fall and you know what that means . . . winter is coming soon. Well, for most people that’s what it means. For me, it means running around and gathering information to send to Revenue Canada.

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It seems that every year or so at this time I’m politely asked to explain some of the deductions on my income tax.

I know it’s kind of late in the year. I submitted my tax return in March, received my notice of return back in April, and now in November I get a letter saying “wait a minute, we’d like to see some documentation to support your claim”.

I’ve had my refund for months. It’s pretty much been dispersed by now to savings, vacation and my children’s support fund.

That’s right, my kids are in their twenties but it doesn’t mean I’m not still doling out cash to them when needed.

Anyway, the revenue department usually wants to see my charitable receipts. They want to make sure I have receipts to back up my claim.

Coming up with receipts is not the problem, but because I claim receipts for previous years, I have to send them all the receipts I’m claiming and have claimed in those previous years. It is an aggravation I could really do without!

But this year is different. They want proof that I still have a son in university to claim his tuition.  Though he’s taking his sweet time finishing his degree, I don’t think 23 is an unlikely age for a son to still be wandering down the hallowed halls of higher education.

It’s an easy response – just one form to send in and I have it all ready to go. It’s the other request that bugs me: they want me to prove my claim for travel.

At one time a pastor would live beside the church and only have to walk next door. For that matter, his whole parish might be within walking distance and he wouldn’t have to drive his car very much.

But we live in the 21st century. I have appointments, meetings, visits, conferences, things to pick up, all that take place around the city and beyond … of course I use my car for work!

But the problem is they want all the receipts categorized, all my kilometres driven, and those that were driven for work, including the purpose of the mileage.

I have all that info, but it’s a pain to have to organize it all the way they want it.

Sometimes I wonder why they go after me so often. Every single time I’ve given them the documentation they asked for and it’s satisfied them.

But I have to remember it’s not some six foot, 250 pound, middle-aged man with dark grey hair and thick curly eyebrows stewing over my tax form. It’s some mainframe computer without a brain that spits out requests based on the number of 7’s or something I used in my tax return.

Next year I’m rounding everything up or down to eliminate those 7’s!

Here’s the thing: Occasionally, I don’t want to take the time to spend time with God because other things are pressing, or I’m in a hurry. Time with God then feels like an inconvenience – like having to send documents to Revenue Canada. If I keep delaying that I will be penalized. And if I make excuses for not spending time with God, I will miss out on what He has for me that day.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What gets in your way of spending time with God? Leave your comment below.