impact

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Impact Your Living By Who You Live For

Sometimes others can impact how you live … and not necessarily for the better.

impact your living by who you live for

Back in May of this year we looked after our daughter and son-in-law’s dog for two weeks. Neither Lily or I have had any pets, other than a turtle and an iguana, and those were many years ago. 

Having a dog in our home for two full weeks was a pretty big deal. 

All in all, it was a good experience and we really enjoyed having the little guy around. His name is Martin (you can read about him here).

Well, Martin’s back for another two week stint and things have been going very well … other than we would like to give him a bath, but that’s not something we are going to try.

There is one big thing I’ve noticed with having him around this time. He’s having an impact on how I’m living.

I think most people adjust to whoever they are around. You may be more of a listener with some, or more of a talker with others. You may not bring up certain topics around some people. It all depends on who you’re with. 

I’ve discovered that this principle doesn’t just pertain to people; it also pertains to other creatures like dogs.

I have been altering how I’m living in my own home because of the furry fella who’s pretty much by our side all day long.

Martin has some special qualities that keep him front and centre in our attention. He’s definitely the neediest one in the family. 

For starters, he likes to be petted, probably 24/7 if he could get it. He also likes chasing squirrels and rabbits which we have plenty of in our backyard. 

But it’s more about the things he doesn’t like that has impacted my living experience … in my own home.

He doesn’t like being downstairs very much and so I’ve found myself hanging around upstairs more than I normally would. Instead of working on my computer at my desk, I’ve been bringing my laptop upstairs and working at the kitchen table. 

He doesn’t like my pool cue, nor does he like the sound the pool balls make when they smack together. So I’ve tended not to play as much pool the last week and a half. 

Martin also doesn’t like it if Lily and I go to bed at different times. He likes it better when we go together. 

Once Lily goes to bed, Martin will keep coming downstairs to check on me. He will give me gestures, like he’s communicating, “Hey, are you coming upstairs now or what?”

That has led me to not finish the movie I’ve been watching, or to turn off the TV and not watch another episode of the program I’m binge watching at the time. 

And my response has been, “Okay, I’m coming now.” 

In the last two weeks, this little fuzzy fella has literally forced me to reduce my time in the family room and kept me living in a fraction of our home’s square footage.

I’m looking forward to having no restrictions on my living next week.

Here’s the thing: When you deeply care for someone – or something, in the case of Martin the dog – it will impact your living. It is also true with God. If you truly love God, it will impact how you live; you will want to live to please Him. You can judge how deeply you love God by the impact He has on your living.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: Who is impacting your living right now? Leave your comments and questions below.

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How Your Purchases Make An Impact

Have you ever thought how much we consumers are getting ripped off in our purchases? I know everyone has to make a living, and demand will drive the price of a product, but I hate paying more than I have to.

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Recently, I purchased an optical audio cable through Amazon. The price was unbelievable at $2.99 so I had to order it. I should have ordered 100 and gone into business. The same cable at Best Buy or Future Shop would have cost me between $25 and $35.

How can I possibly get that cable at such a low price unless someone is making about 90% profit on it or there is some factory worker in China making about $.50 a day?

I can see it all happening … Some guy wakes up at about 4 am, rolls up his sleeping matt in his thatched roof home that’s on stilts in the country. He gets on his bicycle and rides down dirt roads, past flooded rice fields, and arrives at a huge factory at about 6 am.

He puts on his uniform and joins an assembly line of people putting together wires they have never seen before, have no idea what they are for, and have no use for them themselves.

He then repeats that ritual six days per week to provide for his family.

Meanwhile, I’m waiting about 4-6 weeks (feels like 46 weeks) for this piece of wire to arrive in the mail. I’m happy that I finally have it now, but I was really tempted about two weeks in to just break down and purchase the cable at full price.

I’d also be okay paying $25 for the cable if I knew that someone in perhaps Aylmer, Ontario was in his garage hand-making these cables, one at a time. But my suspicion tells me that all these cables are made in China by the same guy who’s making $.50 per day.

I guess I shouldn’t be too quick to make these assumptions; I haven’t even tried the cable out yet. What if my 3 buck audio cord doesn’t even work? I didn’t by it from a store where I can take it back. I can’t call up the factory worker in China who made the thing; he may not even have electricity in his hut, for all I know.

One comforting thing is that, for the amount of time it took for my package to arrive, it shows that their postal service is as bad or worse than ours. And there was some saving in the packaging.

The cable in the store was all packaged in a box, with a see-through window to view the product. It was attractive and gave all kinds of information about the product, probably including where it was made. My product came in a small knock-off ziplock bag, inside a 4×6 bubble pack envelope.

There was no product information, but the bag was clear plastic so I could see the entire product. I’m happy that I only paid a fraction of what it would have cost me in the store … I’m just saying there’s a rip-off going on somewhere!

Here’s the thing:  Regardless of what cable I purchase, I’m making an impact on someone. The difference is in the kind of impact I’m going to make. And you can live in such a way that your faith shows up very little in your life or you can live in a way that your faith is very prominent in your life. You will have an impact on people, either way. What kind of an impact do you want to make?

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What kind of impact does your life make on others? Leave your comment below.