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My Days Are Getting Longer

The best part of early spring is how the days just keep getting longer and longer.

My Days Are Getting Longer

One thing I really like after the time change is how much later it stays light out in the evenings. It’s a big deal for me. 

For people who lived before there was electricity, they must have been ecstatic. They had so much more time to do things, to get things done. During one part of the year they would be shutting things down around 5 pm, but as the days got longer they could extend their work to 7 or 8 pm and later.

I remember when we lived in Edmonton and in the summer we could still be on the golf course at 10 pm! 

There were, however, some downsides … like when we ran summer camps. We wanted to end each day with a camp fire, but there is something lost when you’re sitting around the fire with the sun still high in the sky! 

Though the daylight is now extending later, I’m finding that my days are getting longer as well.

During this time when people are working from home, some not working at all, and others practicing self-isolation or forced isolation, there is less work being accomplished. 

More and more stores and businesses are restricting hours or closing their doors altogether. 

There is less that we can do. The normally busy parents, chauffeuring their children from one club or activity to another, have all stopped. 

For many people their days of work and activity are less. The light is increasing, but we have more time on our hands. … But that’s not what I’m experiencing right now. 

As the sun-filled skies linger longer into the evening, I find that my work is keeping pace with the ever-increasing light of day.

Some of the reasons my days are getting longer is that I’m having to learn new things right now to address the current COVID-19 conditions we are facing. 

There are also a number of different tasks or jobs I’m having to add to my day. 

I’m feeling a little like a green garbage bag. You know, there is always a little more you can stuff into one of them … the plastic stretches to make room.

It’s a huge contrast to when I’m on vacation. On vacation, I get up and decide what the one big thing is that I will do that day – maybe go to the beach, or hike a trail to a hidden lake. Everything else in the day then supports that main activity in one way or another. 

Right now, unfortunately, I need to make sure my list is constantly in front of me and that it is up-to-date so I don’t miss something important. 

Right now, all I know is that there is a part of me that wishes the days were getting shorter.

Here’s the thing: Whether your days are getting longer or have been shortened for the time being, be sure that on your list for each day is time with God. It is easy to get busy with work or busy with other things. At this time especially, don’t neglect time with God … and pray that He puts a halt to the coronavirus. 

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: How will you make sure God is a big part of your day at this time? Leave your comments and questions below.

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Why Projects Always Take Longer Than You Plan For

This post is a repost from January 2014, I hope you enjoy it.

Maybe it’s just me, but all projects I take on turn out to be more than I bargained for. It doesn’t matter what it is, nothing is as simple as I think it’s going to be. Something I think will take 10 minutes will take a half hour.  

projects

The other day I decided to fix a broken standing pole lamp that Lily really liked.

I took some measurements and headed to the hardware store. I was hoping for an all-in-one-fix-your-standing-pole-lamp-diy kit, but though I looked everywhere, I couldn’t find one.

I scoured the electrical section and found wire that I needed. There were two gauges to choose from; I picked the heavier gauge. I grabbed a switch and a socket that looked about the same as the original ones and headed home.  

So I purchased three items and, as it turned out, all of them were different that the original items in the lamp. But for some reason, I figured they would work just fine … and that’s all Lily cared about. She wanted the lamp to work.

It’s like the instruction sheet mentality, where you think, “Who needs instructions? Just do it and don’t worry about spare parts; it will all work out.” 

Well, my first problem was in replacing the wire. The opening in the pole was tight; I should have bought the lighter gauged wire. But I was going to make it work! So I forced it in and, yes, it probably took 3X longer than I thought, but I got it done.

I was surprised that the socket went on really quickly. That should have concerned me. When something is that easy, it usually means I forgot to do something. But I was on a roll and moved on to the switch.

I realized that I bought an on/off switch when the original had been a dimmer switch. At that point I didn’t really care. Lily was going to have light, and when you have light, why in the world would you ever want to dim that?!

With the switch in place, I plugged the lamp in and flicked that switch. Voila, it worked! I thought this was one of the easiest projects I’d done in a long time.  

That’s when I went to put the lamp shade on and realized why the old socket was different from the new one. It was used to secure the shade to the lamp.

I had to take off the socket and use the old one, and that required me to use solder. … I can’t solder worth a darn and it took me forever to make the change.  

When my project was finally complete, I didn’t stand back and think, “Great job, Paul. You did it again.”  

I placed the lamp stand in the living room, turned my back to it and walked away thinking, “I don’t want to look at that lamp for the rest of the night.”

Here’s the thing: Sometimes we want to fix our problems in life with ideas we’ve tried before or recycled approaches from some self-help source. The best approach, however, is to seek God for a fresh solution to your problem. Ask Him to apply His power to the problem at hand. He will use the right materials for the job.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What gives you the greatest frustration in problems or projects you have?  Leave your comment below.

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My Lists Just Keeps Getting Longer

At this time of year more people are carrying around lists. Christmas time is probably the “king of lists” – mine just keeps growing. 

list, getting longer

Most people set out to make a list and then work at checking the items or actions off the list until they have completed everything. 

My lists are getting longer and longer. We are getting closer and closer to Christmas but my lists are on pace to keep me going until well into the new year. 

My Christmas “things to do” list is similar to my kind of grocery list. While some people will methodically plan their route and cross off the items as they put them into the cart, I see something and add it to the list as I place it in the cart. 

… Oh I cross it out, but by the time I’m finished, I’ve added quite a few things that my wife, Lily, didn’t request and often really didn’t want in the house. 

I feel that my list of tasks this Christmas is much like that. Every time I go to cross something off the list, I have to add one or two more things. 

What makes matters worse is that Lily is adding things to my growing list. That should not be allowed; you keep your list to yourself. Everyone has his own list(s) and shouldn’t need to be helping someone else cross items off her list … especially at Christmas. 

I remember a time when I couldn’t wait to look at a list. The coach would post those who made the team and if your name was on the list, you were in. We would practically climb over each other’s backs to get a glimpse of the names on that list. 

The lists I’m making now don’t hold any of that anticipation or excitement.

I don’t like pulling out my list now, unless it is to check something off … and then I want to do it really quickly so that I don’t think of something else I need to add to it. 

I make my lists electronically these days. I can make a list on my computer and be able to see it and update it on my phone or iPad. I am never without it.

In the days when I used to make paper lists, sometimes I would have to remake them, so that I would be writing out the same item several times if I didn’t get it checked off soon enough.  

I had a list once that was in my pocket for a good week or more. It was so long that it resembled a child’s Christmas toy list. 

I kept at that list, checking things off one by one. By the time I got to the end of the list, the fibres in the paper had changed. The list felt more like it was written on a Kleenex tissue. And no, when I crossed off the last item, I did not blow my nose with the list. 

Right now I wish my current list would magically disappear.

Here’s the thing: There is a list that is really important and it’s a list that you want to get your name on. The Bible says that after Christ returns, He will bring out the Book of Life and it will list everyone who will join Christ in heaven. I want to be on that list, and you will want to also. Placing your faith in Christ is what is needed to get on that list. Add that to your Christmas list this year if you’re not already on Christ’s list. 

That’s Life! 

Paul

Question: How important is completing your list this Christmas? Leave your comments and questions below.