relationships

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Up Early Christmas Morning … Again!

Well, this year I’ve come full circle. I thought it would take longer for it to happen, like maybe not until I was 80 or 85.

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But no, it’s happened already.

In life we start out needing help for pretty much everything and, at the end, we also need more and more help.

They say seniors and teens have lots in common. They both can’t hear – one group because of head phones, the other because, well … they just can’t hear.

They both have no filters on what they say; they say exactly what they’re thinking.

You don’t like their music and they sure won’t tolerate yours.

Each thinks the other doesn’t know anything.They both don’t remember what you said to them five minutes ago.

And they’re both really dangerous behind the wheel of a car!

I’m not saying these things are observable right now in my life, but there is one thing.

When I was a kid I used to get up real early on Christmas morning. It was understandable; I was excited about the presents and all.

Then I went through the stage where I slept in on Christmas morning because I was tired and not that excited about what was under the tree.

But this year, in this way, I’ve reverted back to my childhood. I was up at the crack of dawn Christmas morning.

That’s right, 5:55 in the morning and I was climbing out of bed!

The difference this year was I passed by the treasures in the living room and headed straight downstairs.

I spent time alone doing my devotions and then I worked on my sermon.

We had determined the night before that we would get things rolling at our house at about 10 am so I figured I would have a few hours of productivity first.

By the time people were stirring and visions of sugar plums were starting to fade, I had a couple of hours of work completed on my sermon.

I had tried to work ahead, but I just hadn’t been able to finish my sermon before Christmas Eve for the Sunday after Christmas.

With only a couple of days in between, it meant writing on Christmas Day or Boxing Day. I didn’t want to miss out on time with my family so I thought, “I have an opportunity here to use unused, discarded time to get things done.”

I had just put the final strokes on my message when I heard some footsteps from above. For a second I thought it  was old Saint Nick making his yearly visit but then I realized it was only my wife heading into the kitchen.

As the house came alive and everyone gathered for some breakfast, I emerged from the basement, sermon complete, ready to enjoy Christmas morning with my family with no pressure hanging over my head.

But just like the young, about mid afternoon I was ready for a nap.

Here’s the thing: Often we think those early hours are time to sleep, and not good for anything. But those early quiet hours can be the most special time we can have with God.

Merry Christmas Everyone!

Paul

Question: What have you seen come full circle in your life? Leave your comment below.

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Christmas Time Is All About Travel

You know it’s Christmas time when you start making several long distance day trips.

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Some people know it’s Christmas time when the lights go up, when the snow starts to fall, or when they start hearing Christmas songs on the radio.

For me those are only the birth pangs of Christmas. In the Bible we’re told that wars and earthquakes aren’t the end of the world, they are just signs that it’s getting close.

When we have our Christmas program and dinner at church, I know it’s getting close. When I hear the “Boss” Bruce Springsteen singing “Santa Clause is Coming to Town” on the radio, I start to feel the rumblings.

But I really know it’s Christmas when I have to pack the car for a day trip to Toronto and another day trip to Ottawa.

We live the farthest away from both sides of our family so we are always on the move at Christmas. The downside is that we usually meet on the Saturdays before and after Christmas so I have to be back home the same day in order to be ready to preach the next day.

It makes for a couple of long days.

The first trip is three hours to Toronto, followed by a game of hockey with our sons and nephews trying to show us up on the ice. They’re all getting pretty big and good … or my brother, John, and I are getting old and slow. Worse … maybe it’s a combination of both!

After hockey we have dinner and then hang out, eating some candy off my dad’s old candy tray. John has taken Dad’s place, every year meticulously purchasing and arranging the candy on the three-tiered server.

Then before it gets too late in the evening, we make the three hour trek back home.

The second day is very similar, minus the hockey game. There’s more chill time, but we still have the commute on either end of the day.

The travel is what makes these days exciting. You just never know what you are going to get from one day to another or one year to another.

We’ve travelled in blizzards, rain and freezing rain. We’ve driven on bare roads, ice,  and ruts with six inches of snow.

This year should prove to be the best driving weather we’ve had in many, many years … but you never know until you make the trip. And the way home can be very different from the way down.

But you know what? It’s Christmas time and that’s what we do at Christmas. We spend a little time with our extended family. We take some time to enjoy each other’s company, to eat and laugh, share stories and remember.

One of the best things we do is remember – remember our family when it was younger and smaller, remember family members who are no longer with us. We remember the good, the best of how we got to be where we are.

It’s Christmas time; that’s what we do.

Here’s the thing: The first Christmas story is not that dissimilar to our Christmas each year. Joseph and Mary had to travel a long distance. The conditions were anything but ideal. There was a little drama when they got to Bethlehem, a little competition for a place to stay. But in the end, it was an event that created a memory for them they would never forget.

In fact we remember this event now. Hey, it’s Christmas time – time to remember Christ’s birth, time to remember how much God loves us.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What will you do to celebrate Christmas this year? Leave your comment below.

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How To Get The Pie You Really Want

Most people like pie. In fact, if you ask anyone, they will tell you what their favourite pie is.

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We all have a favourite.

When I was young, my aunt took me to a restaurant and for dessert she ordered me a piece of lemon meringue pie.

That immediately became my favourite … but I was young and impressionable at the time and I did not have a lot of experience with pie.

I learned over the years that there were many pies that I could consider as dear to my heart. But there became one pie that stood out from all the rest …

Raspberry pie.

You see, we had a large raspberry patch in our backyard and we enjoyed raspberries for a good portion of the summer. Every year my mom would make one or two pies from the fruit of the patch.

It takes a lot of raspberries to make a pie … well, to make a real pie –  it’s just raspberries and sugar. (My mouth started to water as I wrote that last sentence.)

I would savour that pie and, if I was lucky, I would get two pieces. They were so good I had to lick the plate! I know that’s not polite to do, but when something is that good you can’t let any of it escape your taste buds, can you?

Since that time, when I’m looking for a piece of pie, I’m always on a quest for raspberry.

I remember one time stopping on the side of the road in the country. A little old woman was selling pies and she had a raspberry one. I was so excited I bought it and couldn’t wait to get it home to eat. But my joy turned to disappointment at the first bite.

I couldn’t believe a grandmotherly, farm lady would make her pie out of jam! There should be a law against that.

You get the idea that raspberry pies are sacred to me and they need to be crafted in a purely natural way, without foreign additives.

So you can understand that at our church Christmas dinner, where the men were requested to bring pies for dessert, I kind of put a plug in for raspberry pies.

I had good intentions. I figured that since I was usually near the end of the line when it came to the meal, if there were a few raspberry pies, I might have a chance to get a piece.

Well, yesterday was our church Christmas dinner, and I guess I pumped up the raspberry pie pretty good because someone told me there were about six!

I shouldn’t have been worried. I should have been patient, but when I saw the lineup for dessert, I couldn’t help but eat faster.

I was one of the last to go through the meal line, and many were finishing their dinner when I was starting. So when I finished my food, I snuck to the front of the dessert line and snagged me a piece of my precious!

I’m not proud of it, but it didn’t sour the taste of that delicious raspberry pie going down … with a little whip cream on top too!

Here’s the thing: We go to great lengths to get something that we really like or want. We don’t let obstacles get in our way. We need to be that way with God. We should not let anything get in the way of our relationship with Him. Let nothing stop you from spending time with Him … that”s how much we should want God.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What lengths have you gone to to get your favourite pie? Leave your comment below.

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I’m Still Paying For Dinner

Someday, when my family goes out to dinner, I won’t be paying the bill. The other night I saw a foreshadow of this, but in the end, I still had to ante up.

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My family is not quite there yet. They still depend on dad to come through at crucial times, like at the cash register or when the mobile credit card machine is brought to the table.

It was a momentous occasion – both Karlie and Mike were in town on the same day when it wasn’t a holiday or some special event. It was a last minute kind of thing so we quickly threw a plan together.

I got a couple of extra tickets to the hockey game and we decided to go out for dinner beforehand.

We only had one hitch: we had to decide where we would eat. That shouldn’t normally be a difficult decision. There are plenty of restaurants in town.

Reading everyone’s mind and coming up with the right place is not always easy in my family.

I suggested burgers … Hey, we were going to a hockey game, not the theatre, so burgers seemed to be a good fit.

My wife, however, wanted everything. She wanted a classy dinner at hamburger prices.

Well, there just isn’t that option in downtown Kingston, so we ended up settling on a trendy restaurant which catered more towards Lily’s atmosphere tastes than her desired price point.

It was good though because we were all in agreement.

However, I noticed a few things right away. It was my son who took the lead at getting us a table. It seemed to me that our waitress identified him as the leader of our group … or that he was the most eligible person at the table!

And when the menu came, it was Mike who gave his mother a few pointers regarding what was on it. And both our kids gave us a little instruction or constructive criticism on ordering food in a restaurant.

When that happened, I had a flashback to when they were children and we not only had to order for them but we had to feed them as well.

I wondered if the tables will turn completely the other way one day. Well, it’s better not to think about that too much, so, never mind.

We had a great meal. Everyone seemed to enjoy what they ordered and I noticed my kids didn’t seem to have any concern for the price of things.

When it was time for the bill, the waitress brought it to the other side of the table where my son was sitting.

Maybe it was because he was dressed a little better than I was, or maybe he just seemed to be the one in charge at our table. … Or maybe he was the most eligible one at the table and she was hoping he also had all the money.

Well, sadly for her and for me, Mike had no hesitation with passing the bill over to me.

I had this brief glimmer of hope of what could be, of what might be someday. It all lasted two, maybe three seconds before I was staring at the $100 plus bill.

Dear old dad is still good for something, I guess.

Here’s the thing: We can look very good on the outside, like we have it all together, that everything is under control, like we can take care of things. But in the end, it doesn’t matter what we look like on the outside, all that matters is what’s inside. Do you have the currency to meet God’s demands? Faith in Christ is the only currency He’ll take.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: How is your currency with God? Leave your comment below.

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The “I Want It” Principle

There’s something about not being able to do something that makes you long to do it more.  This is a true principle that we all live with.

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You see it clearly in the play of young children. A child plays contently until he sees the toy in another child’s hand. Then suddenly, that’s all he wants.

Children don’t have patience, and they can’t control their emotions like adults can, so they grab for what they can’t have, or get upset and have a tantrum.

We’ve all seen this. It’s predicable and amazing every time.

But just because we grow up and are able to control ourselves, doesn’t mean that this principle is not active or true for us who are mature and have lived on this earth for many years.

We are just able to process the situation, control our emotions and know when to give up on something. We have some common sense that drives us which young children don’t have.

This principle, which I call the “I want it” principle, was revealed in me today, probably because of the season.

It happens every year for me, at the time of year that our house gets decorated for Christmas. The artificial trees get hauled out of storage; the boxes of decorations begin to be uncrated.

At this time of year – every year – I have a strong desire to play pool. That’s kind of a strange urge, isn’t it?

Well, it’s not that strange when you realize that when all the Christmas boxes are brought out of their off-season hibernation, they are strewn around my pool table.

And the worse thing of all is my wife uses the top of my pool table as a flat surface to place all the tree ornaments on!

Now the table hasn’t moved in the ten years we’ve had it, and I do play pool from time to time during the year, but my urge to play is never greater than at this time of year when it is unavailable.

The urge continues over the Christmas season because we have a Christmas tree that stands about three feet from the table, making shots from that end very difficult to make.

Now in case you are wondering, no, I don’t scream or yell. I don’t get on my back and shout, flinging my limbs around at the same time.

I say nothing. I do nothing other than longingly look at my precious pool table and wish I could play a few games.

And unlike a child who you can easily distract by saying, “LOOK OVER THERE!”, to completely get their mind off the “I want it” principle, grownups aren’t as easily distracted.

Hey look, my wife is saying she just made breakfast for me . . . Now what was I talking about?

Here’s the thing: This “I want it” principle can get us confused when we pray. When we pray, we should be praying for God’s will. However, with the ‘I want it” principle in effect, we tend to believe that what we want right now is God’s will for us. Then if God doesn’t give it to us quickly, we question His ability, or care, or knowledge of us. But what we really need to do when the “I want it” principle invades our prayer life is find a distraction so that we can get our minds off the “I want it” and on to seeking God’s will.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What have you asked God for that turned out to be an “I want it” request? Leave your comment below.

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New Doesn’t Always Feel Better At First

I’ve worn the same hockey skates now for 22 years – that’s a long time to be wearing the same set of blades.

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Some people like to stay current and keep up with the latest improvements. Though I like new things, when it comes to hockey equipment, I don’t easily let go.

Over the years I’ve replaced my skate blades several times. But recently I saw signs that other parts were beginning to wear out.

Some of the stitching was giving way, and there were some cracks in the leather inside the boot. … That’s right, leather! It’s not easy to find skates with leather anymore. It was time for a new pair.

But this was not a quick decision. In fact, I’ve been thinking about buying new skates for a couple of years, but the thought of parting with my old skates was just too hard.

My old skates are comfortable; they are well broken in. I like to hang on to things like that. When I was in my early twenties, I sewed strips of cloth to my old long underwear, so that I didn’t have to get a new pair to wear under my equipment.

So making the move to a new pair of skates was a big deal for me.

I’ve worn CCM Tacks for 40 years or more, so that’s what I gravitated to in a new skate. But the new ones looked different, felt different and even fit differently than my old skates.

My old skates were the very first attempt at moulding the boot to your particular foot. With those skates, you put them on and they took a heat gun to the boot, making the boot pliable. Then they sucked all the air out so that the boot formed tight to the contours of your foot.

With my new skates, they went into an oven and were heated up. Then you put them on, tied them up tight and just sat with your skates on until they cooled down.

The results were pretty much the same, though I think my new skates feel even better than my old ones.

But that’s what you get with new things. Processes have been refined over the years, materials have been enhanced, and my new skates weigh considerably less than my olds ones did.

My new skates look better, more modern, up-to-date.

Even though there are many good things about my new skates, there are some drawbacks that I need to overcome. For some reason the new boot feels like there’s more to it so I feel a little clumsy in them.

My new skates also lace up higher than my old ones, which feels a little awkward. I had to undo the top eyelet so that I could get into a comfortable skating position … but tying them one eyelet lower makes them feel like they need to be done up a little higher, just not a whole eyelet higher.

I really needed to get a new pair of skates, and I know that eventually I will get used to them, but between now and then it’s not going to be fun.

Here’s the thing: When God prompts you to make a change in your life, it’s never an easy one. You are comfortable with the old; you are used to it. You feel awkward or out-of-sorts with the new. It’s going to take some getting used to, but in the end, it will be better … God is shaping you into His image.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What have you put off changing in your life? Leave your comment below.

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Watch Out! The Hype Can Disappoint

When the hype doesn’t match the experience, you are doubly disappointed. And I have to say, that’s how I felt after my lunch yesterday.

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It was Sunday after church and Lily was in the mood to eat out. When that happens, you always jump at it! Normally she is the voice of reason, the voice of saving, the voice of “there are leftovers at home we can heat up”.

So when she threw out the suggestion, I jumped at it. I said “sure”, even before she had second thoughts and blurted out, “though we will be spending money eating out later this week”.

It was too late, however; I had already agreed to going out for lunch.

Now it was just a matter of deciding where to eat.

Lily wanted to eat at one of those places that is only open until about three in the afternoon. You know, the ones that specialize in serving breakfast to people who get up late and want to keep that sleepy feeling that it’s still morning.

It was against my better judgement to eat there but I said, “Sure, let’s go.” When we arrived there weren’t many spots in the parking lot and the line up to get in was almost out the door.

… It has got to be a great spot when people are waiting just to get breakfast food, which usually comes with very little or no meat at all.

This place was popular because it was close to 1:30 pm and it was still jammed to capacity. The good thing was that, by that time, many people were finishing up so the wait was not too long.

The atmosphere was cheery in the bright open restaurant. Its colours of yellow, green and orange gave the impression of a beautiful sunny morning.

As we took our seats, it felt like a great day to be alive. And with the sounds of happy people talking all around, I’m sure most everyone felt the same way.

The menu was filled with pictures of the food you could order. It all looked so good, and even half healthy – not like some restaurants where even the pictures of the food make you feel like it would sit in your gut like a lump till dinner time.

I had a hard time deciding if I should go with a crepe filled with fresh fruit and cream or choose a traditional egg meal.

I decided on eggs Benedict. I felt good about my decision, even when it arrived at the table. It looked great; I had high hopes. But one bite in and I was disappointed. The hollandaise sauce was bland; no taste. The very thing that makes the eggs Benedict was blah.

We could have gone home after all. Lil can make eggs Benedict astronomically better!

Here’s the thing: When you spend time with God, put aside the flashy, popular devotional guides and books that tell you what to think. It’s far better to let God shape your thoughts and responses. Grab your Bible and turn to just a verse or two. Read the verse over a couple of times, maybe even write it out. Then ask yourself a few questions like: What’s the instruction here for me? What should I praise God for in this verse? What do I need to confess to God here? What do I need to do? There will be no hype to get in the way of really hearing from God.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What have you found to be the most nourishing devotional method? Leave your comment below.

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I Don’t Want To Be The Backdrop To Your Stage

For some people, every environment is nothing more than a backdrop to their personal stage. They are the centre of attention wherever they go.

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That’s all fine and good; let them be the focus everywhere they go. What I don’t appreciate is being sucked in to their audience.

A perfect example was at the hockey game last night. My wife, Lily, and I took our seats just before the preliminaries, ceremonial puck drop, and singing of the national anthem.

Right away I noticed that there was some chatter behind us. There were two women having a conversation.

I thought maybe they had arrived separately and were just catching up with each other.

I had some different thoughts once the game started. About 45 seconds into the game, one of the women stopped talking long enough to ask, “Has the game started?”

The puck and players were down in the far corner of the rink – it was pretty obvious that the game was on! Somehow she missed the face-off at center ice with all the players lined up.

I honestly thought the woman’s eyesight was impaired and she needed help following the action.

No, that wasn’t the case. She was a non-stop talker and had been busy telling a story about a relationship issue she had with another women, I believe who worked in the same office she did.

… If you’re think that you didn’t need to know that information, that’s how I felt as I watched the game on the ice and got a play-by-play of office politics.

These two women took the stage like pros, barely breathing between sentences, speaking trivial dribble like it was sensitive information that would later be reported on the 11 o’clock news.

I didn’t look back, but I am sure that thermal imprint my brain took of the scene behind me was of these two women in their thirties, turned slightly towards each other in their seats, with not an eye turned to what was happening on the ice.

It was brutal to say the least! Lily couldn’t stand it; she wanted to sit somewhere else. She immediately stood up when the horn went to end the period; she had to get away from the two performers behind us.

These women had no interest in the game. It was all just a backdrop to their conversation, which they were sure everyone around them wanted to get in on.

And sure, why wouldn’t I go to a hockey game to hear about why a guy ignored a woman in the office after she had apologized for the thing she had said in the presence of several other coworkers?

I don’t think he was being fair either. Except for the fact that, if I was that guy, I wouldn’t just ignore the woman, I would be asking my boss for a transfer, looking for another job, or doing pretty much anything else, just so I didn’t have to listen to her anymore!

Here’s the thing: Sometimes when we pray, we use that as a backdrop to our own stage, where we do all the talking, and never stop asking. When our prayer is done, it’s like the curtain closes, the lights dim and the audience leaves. Prayer is not a backdrop for our performance. It is a conversation that should involve more listening than talking. When we pray we should be sure we are allowing room on the stage for God to speak into our lives.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: How do you manage your prayer time to give room for God to speak to you? Leave your comment below.

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You Should Act On Your Impulses

Last weekend I did a little shopping on impulse. It’s not what you think; I didn’t come home with some frivolous purchase that will end up in a corner of the garage behind a stack of tarps.

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I didn’t come home with anything.

What I did was more like shopping research than actual shopping. The research involved a little bit of price comparison, but my investigation mainly centred around product features.

The impulse was the idea I got in my head that it was time to get some smart home devices. Right now those items are mostly lights you can turn on and off and thermostats that can be controlled from anywhere in the world with a swipe across the screen of an iPhone.

I’m not really sure what brought on the impulse, but I sure jumped into action. The brainwave hit me when I was in a store and so I moseyed over to the right department, but they didn’t have what I was looking for.

My next stop was a nearby big box hardware store where I was introduced to a couple of products I’d not seen before. Both looked pretty good; I was leaning towards one in particular.

That’s when a store employee came by and I asked him all kinds of questions. He had some answers, even owned one of the products, and was pretty enthusiastic about it.

But he said one thing that kept me searching. He said another store sold products that would work alongside theirs. … I had to see that.

This took me to another box store where I didn’t find any compatible items to the previous store’s offering, but I did come across some new products that did similar things.

I also ran into a salesperson who owned one of the products and was again very eager to tell me all about it and how it worked.

I picked up a little more information there, but left with more questions, not about the products but about how they interacted with the smart phone technology.

I started to search the web for more information on where these smart home devices are going, and since I was close to another big hardware store, I thought I would check it out.

There I found some repeats and a few news products. I also had a salesperson, who knew absolutely nothing about the products, try to answer some of my questions.

By the time I had finished my tour of the stores, and my brief internet discoveries, I concluded that it might be too soon to jump in and get my home all smart.

There are new products in the works that will be far less limited than the ones that are available right now.

I’m waiting for when I can get my home to prepare my meals for me. Oh wait, no, that’s called a retirement home . . . I’m definitely not ready for that.

Here’s the thing: I was thinking about how I, on impulse, did some research into a product that just popped into my head, and was thinking we should do the same with the Bible. When you read the scriptures you are confronted with things that cause you to question. How often do we just keep reading and never do anything to satisfy our curiosity? Ask questions, get a commentary, read a book on something in the Bible that causes you to think. Don’t just pass up on that impulse.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What have you become curious about in the Bible?  Leave your comments below.

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A Banking Mishap Has Made Me More Protective

The other day, I had a banking mishap that I’m sure many people have also had over the last couple of months: having to pay for using an ATM or an ABM (they should just stick with one acronym).

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Personally, I’m not a fan of paying for my banking. I think I’ve written about this before, but my feeling is that the banks should feel privileged to use our money to invest and make lots more for themselves.

Somehow banks have reversed that mindset, thinking their customers should feel privileged to give them our money for safekeeping.

Anyway, I was on my way to getting a haircut, which for me is a cash transaction. I didn’t have any so I first went next door to the Mac’s store to get a few shekels from the bank machine.

Up until a month ago, that machine was associated with my bank … I’ve used it many times over the past fifteen years.

But to my surprise, when I got into the store, the ATM was gone. I quickly glanced around and then spied something that looked like an automated teller machine, just in a different colour.

The markings read, “Manulife Bank”, but there was a spot for my debit card to go in, so I inserted it.

I got a message immediately informing me that the transaction I wanted to do would cost me $3. I quickly gave my head a shake because I thought I’d been transported to one of those cheque cashing places, like Cash Money, home of the $300 for $20.

I knew my bank would also charge me for using a machine that is not part of their network, so I had to think for a minute: “Do I really want to spend $5 to take my money out of my bank?”

I must have paused until the machine almost timed out, but I figured, “I need the cash right now, and I will not be doing this again”.

I’ve noticed these Manulife Bank machines are replacing my bank’s machines in a number of places. So now I have to plan a little more carefully when I want to withdraw money from my account.

I guess I could take out an account with Manulife, but frankly I’ve never seen a branch of theirs before. I looked on their website and found that they have five branches spread across Canada – the closest one to me is three hours away!

I don’t think I’ll be banking with them any time soon.

I know that many people don’t think twice about paying the fees for using convenient cash machines, but these banks already have my money for basically nothing. Why should I be gouged so that their president can take home a salary of $3 million a year plus bonuses?

No, I’d rather pick my ATM more carefully so that I’m not giving Manulife Bank executives a Starbucks coffee every time I use their machine.

Here’s the thing: There will always be something that comes along that will seek to take advantage of your money or your time. These things will be convenient and practical. You will feel pressured to part with your time or money. But you have to be your own protector of what is yours. Spiritually speaking, make sure that the things that seek to take advantage of you don’t take from your time with God or your stewardship of His resources.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What seeks to take advantage of your money or your time? Leave your comment below.