sin

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Mistake After Mistake

A few weeks ago, I wrote about a new project Lily and I are working on at our house. We’re putting new closet doors in our bedroom. (You can read that blog here.)

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At that time, it was mostly an idea to follow through on. I had taken the old closet doors off, and since then ordered new doors and begun the work of widening the closet opening.

It was going pretty well … up until last Saturday.

Our new sliding doors arrived and all I needed to do was set the door jams in the frame to make the finished opening the right size.

… It sounds pretty simple, but this is the very reason why I would never make it as a carpenter.  You see, I’m just not that good at getting things level and square and … precise.

I’m more of a rough estimate kind of guy. I also am much better at demolition than I am at construction. I had no problem taking off the drywall (though Lily didn’t like the mess), and I was pretty good and creative at removing a couple of 2×4 studs on either side of the opening.

That part went so smoothly, I even thought I kind of liked doing this project …

… until I remembered my mother’s words to me and my brother when we were young and had just broken another one of her Hummel figurines: “You two should go into the demolition business when you get older because you’re really good at it.”

… until Saturday. That’s the day I needed to put the door jams in. All that required of me was to make sure my opening was large enough, nail three pieces of wood together (two sides and a top piece), and shim it in level and square.

That’s it. It sounds so simple but it took so long! I had to call in the cavalry (my son, Mike), and even between the two of us, we worked all afternoon on it.

When it was done, the sides were pretty level and square, but the joint at one of the corners was splitting. I didn’t care at that point. I figured we could cover that up some how.

So we put up the tracks for the doors to hang on. That part was easy. But when we went to hang the door panels, we realized I had not calculated enough for the height of the doors.

They rubbed on the carpet so that it took a little effort to slide them back and forth.

I was pretty discouraged and didn’t know what to do. I really didn’t want to take that jam out after spend a whole day putting it in.

But by the next morning, I realized I needed to do it. So I did what I do best … I demoed the door jams and took out a 2×4 at the top and replaced it with a 1×4.

Now all I have to do is put in the new jam, and shim it level and square. Sounds simple, right?

Oh brother, here we go again!

Here’s the thing: When you make a mistake, the last thing you want to do is correct it. You try to cover it up, make do with it, even blame someone else for it. But the only way to really fix it is to correct the mistake. This applies to sin in your life too. Don’t cover it up; don’t make do with it or blame someone else. Go to God and correct it. Then you can move on.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: How have you dealt with mistakes you’ve made? Leave your comment below.

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Why Keeping Secrets Can Hurt You

I need you to keep this blog a secret … at least from my doctor. Today is my birthday and there are probably going to be a few surprises. But there will also be a few things that I am sure of today.

Paul's Birthday cake

While I have no idea what presents I will receive, I do know what cake I will be eating on my birthday. It’s the same every year. And just to confirm my already confident prediction, I saw Lily baking it.

Now the reason we have to keep this from my doctor is because of the sugar and fat content of this cake. All cakes fall into the “not healthy” category of food groups, but my cake probably ranks up there higher than most.

The ingredients are simple: angel food cake, whip cream and raspberries. When the cake has been baked, it is cut in half and both halves are hollowed out just a bit. Then in a bowl you mix the raspberries into the whip cream to make the “icing”.

Once that’s done, you put a ton of the “icing” into the hollowed out parts of the cake and then put the two halves back together.

Finally, you slather the outside of the cake (and I mean slather it on thick) with the whip cream mixture and you’re done.

Now is your mouth watering already? . . .  Mine is, and it’s only 7:30 am when I’m writing this piece.

So, you see, this is not the kind of thing you share with your doctor.

When he asks how you are feeling, you say, “Very well, thank you.”  When he asks, “Have you been getting your exercise?” you say, “I’ve been biking three times a week.” When he queries how you have been eating, you DON’T mention the cake. You just say, “I’ve been trying to eat more vegetables lately.”

Now I only get this cake once a year. It’s strictly a birthday cake, not an “I thought I’d bake your favourite cake Friday”. But this year I got a bonus.

For the first time in six years, Karlie was home for her birthday and Lily, like usual, was all geared up to bake her a cake. But to everyone’s surprise, and my delight, Karlie asked for my birthday cake.

So I’ve had a couple of pieces already this year; just as good as ever, and double reason not to let this leak out to the doctor.

By the way, it’s not all bad. I’ll be working that cake off today by stripping the paint off my deck at the cottage. It will be like I ate only vegetables today.

Here’s the thing: In life we can keep things from others. We might do it to look good or because we would be embarrassed or ashamed if others knew. But just like my birthday cake will contribute to clogging my arteries and adding on a few pounds, keeping things from others only hurts yourself. You can try to keep things from God, and try to ignore the fact that He knows everything. You can even pretend that it’s all a secret. But you are only hurting yourself. Admit your sin to God; don’t try to hide it from Him. He knows anyway … just like my doctor will probably get wind of this blog.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: How has keeping something from others hurt you in the long run? I’d really like to hear from you;, you can leave your comment below.

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Get Your Email Inbox To Zero, Part 2

This is part two of a blog I posted on Saturday, March 1, 2014. So if you are reading this and haven’t read the first part, check out “How To Get Your Email Inbox To Zero”.

For me the biggest concern I have with bulging email inboxes is the feeling of not being caught up, and that I may have missed something. And believe me, there have been times emails have got buried and I didn’t do what I was supposed to do.

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In my last post, I said I needed help. So I went looking for some help to get control of this “rascally little rabbit” email inbox.

I combed through the google suggestions based on searches like “overflowing email inbox” or “help I’m buried underneath a thousand emails” … you know, usual search line phrases.

And to boil down all the information, I decided on three components to zeroing out my email inbox. The first is a decision process which is called D.D.F.D. that stands for “Do it, Defer it, File it, Delete it”.

I start by applying this process to each email. If I can address the email in 2 minutes or less, I do it; if I can’t, I defer it to a later time. If I might need to reference it later, I file it. If I don’t need to respond to it, I delete it.

It sounds like a simple process, but I have found myself staring at emails, contemplating which action I should take. Sometimes I need to do it AND file it, and then I always need to delete it from my inbox (I think I’ve been hypnotized).

Anyway, the process is vitally important but I needed some apps to help me make it all happen.

I use an app called “Evernote” to file emails in that I may need to reference later. Basically, I email the email to my Evernote account and it is then stored in the cloud, off my computer and especially out of my inbox.

The app I use to defer things to is called “Nozbe”. This app turns emails into tasks, and I basically email the email to my Nozbe account, also stored in the cloud.

That’s the basics – ask me if you want to know more. The bottom line is I’ve zeroed out my inbox for the last 5 days now. And there’s no looking back!

You wouldn’t believe how good this feels. I feel in control, and on top of things. When I look at that inbox and see nothing in it, I get this big ol’ smile on my face.  … Well I would get that big ol’ smile on my face if I was a 250 pound state trouper from Georgia.

I still have to delete my trash and my sent folders, but my finger is hovering over the erase button . . . . and  . . . oh, there. Gone! I did it.

Here’s the thing: In my last blog, I said dealing with an over-full inbox is like sin. The first step is to admit you have a problem. Identify the sin you have difficulty with and seek God’s help. The great thing is that God will forgive you.

Then take steps to distance yourself from that sin. Like zeroing out my inbox, it takes some planning, commitment to that plan and discipline. There may be times when my inbox starts to build up, but I can get right back at implementing my methods. And the same is true when you sin again: seek God in repentance and get back to your plan.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question:  What steps do you take to keep sin out of your life?

I’d really love to hear from you; leave your comment below.

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How To Get Your Email Inbox To Zero

I have an email problem like many people do. I have too many and my inbox just keeps getting bigger.

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I need to do something with my unruly inbox. I have hundreds of emails in it and it keeps growing.

I could give up and get a new email address, cancel my present one and start fresh. But that would cause all kinds of problems and it would just mean I would start accumulating email in a new inbox.

My real problem is not that I get too many emails in a day – I don’t think that’s anybody’s problem. We can always delete those little suckers in an instant.

I can usually tell by the subject line if I don’t need to read an email. I can then hit delete faster than the pictures and graphics can load on my screen.

Getting rid of my unwanted email is not a big deal. My real problem lies in two other areas:

First there is the issue of what to do with emails that I need to act on or follow up on later.

I stare at those messages, some with grammatical and spelling issues (I’m one to talk), and they dare me to put them in some folder or clip them to some app that I will forget about in a day.

I get uneasy touching them because I know if I move them out of my inbox I’ll forget to respond, or follow up, or remember the details. So I just keep them in my inbox; it’s safer that way. But it’s bulking up my mail program in the mean time.

My other problem area is in saying goodbye to my correspondence for good. When I’ve dealt with an email, or responded, and all the action is complete, I still think I might need to refer to it some day.

So I put it in the trash but I don’t empty the trash. I have over 14,000 emails in my trash!

And then, just in case I need to refer to an email I sent, I don’t make them disappear forever either. I have over 4,000 sent emails in that folder!

I might need some psychiatric help on this. Maybe I was never able to really detach myself from my mother or something.

Maybe deep inside I have an electronic addiction like those hoarders that collect things so that there are piles of junk four feet high throughout their house. Only with me, I have four feet high piles of email spread all over my mail program.

They say the first step to overcome your problem is to admit you have one. Okay, I admit it, I’m an electronic hoarder and I need help.

Here’s the thing: We all have a problem with sin. There is something about it (that sin that keeps enticing you) that we have a hard time resisting. We know we should get rid of it but we keep it around. We don’t seem to have the will to completely detach ourselves from it. Our first step is to recognize this problem we have with our sin. Then call on God for help.

I’ll continue this theme in my next blog.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What do you do to completely rid yourself of sin? I would love to hear from you. You can leave your comment below

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What To Do When The Unexpected Happens

Since my wife was away on the weekend, it was just my 22 year-old son and me at home. More accurately, it was like I was home on the weekend and Mike dropped in and out from time to time.

He wasn’t home for dinner on Friday night so I just had some leftovers. Lily usually leaves me with a fridge full of leftovers, not so much to help with meal preparation but to keep me from spending money at restaurants when she’s way.

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On Saturday morning, I made my regular breakfast of hot oat bran cereal and some fruit. At noon it was still pretty quiet in Mike’s room, so I just had more leftovers for lunch (that my wife had so nicely packaged in plastic containers for us).

Midway through the afternoon, a scary looking creature emerged from his downstairs bedroom. He had worked until 4 am, so 3 in the afternoon was like a “brand new day” for him (check out my blog, “From Plans to Reality”).

There had been an accumulation of dishes in the sink from the past three meals, so I thought I would just clean them up and start fresh at dinner. Besides, I knew that dinner on Saturday night was going to be take out, so few dishes required.

By now, Lily knows that no matter how many leftover meals she puts in the fridge for me, there is a 100% chance that I will be purchasing at least one meal on a weekend. For Saturday dinner, it was a unanimous decision: hot wings from our favourite chicken wing joint.

Three pounds of chicken wings with Frank’s Red Hot sauce … mmmm, I could eat them several times a week. It’s a good thing I have a wife who exerts a little concern for my health and our budget!

Not many dishes for that meal – just a couple of plates, a couple of glasses and we threw the cardboard container in the garbage . . . I mean, the recycling bin.

By the time Sunday morning rolled around, there weren’t too many dishes in the sink. But still, I thought I would just clean them up before I headed out the door to church. By that point in the weekend Mike had been home for one meal and used only one plate and a glass.

When church was over, I thought if Mike was awake, I’d bring home some food for a late lunch. I texted him, and to my surprise he was up and was heading out the door; he didn’t need lunch. So I just came right home.

And that’s when my perfect weekend exploded! The kitchen was a disaster and the sink was full with a bowl, pot, plate, three spoons, a few glasses, an empty container of yogurt or something, and a blender container and parts.

How do you use three spoons in one meal? I thought I was coming home to a clean kitchen and in one meal, my son blew the place up!  Now I know how my wife feels every week!

Here’s the thing: You can be living a pretty clear life before God, pleasing Him with your words, thoughts and deeds. And then out of nowhere, you sin and it seems like you have blown everything with God. When you find an explosion in the kitchen, you just wash the dishes and carry on. When you sin, you do the same – repent to God and carry on.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What kind of messes get you upset the most? Leave your comment below.

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Santa Is Dead

I hate to be the bearer of bad news but I don’t think Santa is coming back next year.

I am fully aware that it is March and we are far, far from that time of year when the jolly old fella usually shows up. However, I just happened to be driving by a house in a nearby subdivision and there was Santa lying on the ground. Pictures don’t lie … and the spears that have pinned him and his trusty helpers to the ground, don’t bode well for his return next December.

Dead Santa

No, I don’t believe in Santa Claus, but I do believe in keeping your decorations applicable to the season. I understand that some people leave their Christmas lights up all year long, but if you don’t look up too high you don’t even notice them.

Lawn ornaments, though? Come on! How hard is it to pack Santa up and put him a box? He’s already been deflated; there’s no HO, HO, HO left in him. I think the kids on the street would become a little suspect that Santa isn’t real when he is laying dead on your doorstep for three months.

As I have looked around the neighbourhood, I’ve seen lots of Christmas ornaments still on display. There was a plastic snowman on a lawn the other night with a light still shining brightly inside him. This weekend was St. Patrick’s Day – at least put a shamrock or a green scarf around his neck!

I’ll admit I’m not the first guy to take down his lights after Christmas. I usually miss the first warm day and end up taking them down when it’s freezing outside. But I get the job done by the middle of January at the latest!

Last year as I was walking around our neighbourhood, I noticed there were lots of people who still had their Christmas lights up in April and May. By looking at the condition of some of the lights, it was apparent they had been there for several years.

Maybe those people lost their ladder. Maybe their garage is so packed that the ladder is buried in there somewhere. Maybe they figure they don’t have room for lights in the basement or garage so they just leave them up.

I think that if you leave your Christmas decoration up all year you have to use them in some way, like maybe change the lightbulbs to pink and blue and white for Easter. Have your blow up Santa hold a big old Pysanka (Ukrainian Easter egg).

On Canada Day, change your lights to red and white and have your blow up reindeer sport Canadian flag saddles. On Labour Day, place them all working in the garden.

Maybe we should have a law that you get a $25 fine for having Christmas decorations up past February 1st. Here’s an idea: JUST TAKE DOWN YOUR CHRISTMAS DECORATIONS!

Here’s the thing: Sometimes we don’t deal with the sin in our lives right away. It becomes clutter in our relationship with God. We need to pay attention to the clutter or we get used to having it in our lives. The best way to take down the clutter or sin is through regular confession to God.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What tends to clutter you home, yard, life? Leave your comment below.

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Beware of Dangerous Fruit

You’ll notice the name and header of my blog have changed. When I created the blog ten months ago, I really had no idea what to call it so I just went with the church name.  I made this name change because it better reflects the content of my blog. Let me know what you think of it. (I also simplified the website address to psthatslife.com)

One night this week, I came home from work, and instead of smelling that sweet aroma of food being prepared, my wife Lily was engrossed in research.

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Now when I get home from work, I make a beeline for the pantry.  Nothing gets in my way of that. If Lily is in the path, I greet her with a kiss and a hug, but not a long hug because, she is in the path to the pantry.

You see, I get hypoglycemic which means I have to eat something right away.  It could be anything, but a kiss will not cut it and a hug will only keep me from falling down, and even then, I could take her down with me.  I need food when I get home and I need it fast!

So, as I was filling my face with chips (oh, did I write that?) Lily was calling me to come see what she had found on the internet.  After scarfing two more handfuls of chips, I made my way to her office where she told me about some research on grapefruit.

Apparently, grapefruit reacts to some medications, creating an overdose effect, a massive overdose in some cases.  (When she mentioned grapefruit, I immediately thought that would be a good chaser to the chips I had just eaten.)

But she was suggesting I shouldn’t eat grapefruit anymore. The whole reason I take “Crestor” instead of “Lipitor” is because I like a little grapefruit for breakfast. Now she was telling me studies show that another pill I take (Plavix) reacts to grapefruit.

I kind of laughed at that point because I have been eating grapefruit everyday for the ten months I have been on this pill. Then I checked and said, “Yup, my heart’s still beating. Hey, I’m alive.”  Lily just rolled her eyes and told me to watch the news report on the internet.

The video was from ABC news. They had their medical expert speaking as if it was a life or death matter. At the close of the interview he said, “Whatever you do, call your doctor and stop taking those drugs.”

I laughed, then asked Lily to play it back. I was right! The expert doctor said “stop taking the drug”. My doctor told me to never to miss taking “Plavix”; it’s keeping my stent open.  But this guy said stop the drug, but keep on eating grapefruit!

So the next morning, I had grapefruit for breakfast.  Later I viewed the video again and they had corrected it. Lil was still worried so she called the pharmacist and he suggest that I stop eating grapefruit.

They’re ganging up on me!

Here’s the thing: Even though it was a possible danger for me to keep eating grapefruit, I ate it the next day anyway.  When confronted by our sin, our natural tendency is to keep on sinning. The key isn’t to dismiss the danger just because nothing bad has happened yet. Rather, dwell deeply on the harm sin in your life can bring and make the change.

That’s Life,

Paul

Question: How do you react to sin in your life? Leave your comment below.

 

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Ya, It’s Nice to be Back!

Recently I went back to playing hockey.  I felt good enough to play, but since I did have a heart attack after the last time I played hockey, I also felt a little weird about it.

Since I left the hospital back in March, I have had to carry a nitroglycerin spray … just in case.  I haven’t had to use it, but when we got to the bench, I told my son Mike where it was in the dressing room, in the event I might need a little shot.  I just felt it would be good for someone to know where it was.

When I got onto the ice, I found that my skates didn’t fit right.  I don’t understand how a heart attack could affect my feet, but my skates which have fit perfect for the last 18 years put my feet into agonizing pain.  It didn’t matter whether I was on the ice or on the bench, my feet just hurt.  That lasted about 45 minutes before the pain went away.

I’ve never experienced that before, nor have I experienced aching muscles around my hips when I skated before.  But that, too, seemed to be a relatively new change for me.  I feel I have aged over the last seven months.

And then there were all the “mothers” that showed up to play.  It was a little embarrassing.  Every time I came to the bench, someone would ask me how I was feeling.  If I looked out of breath or in a little pain, if I slipped or got bumped by someone, these big guys dressed in full hockey gear got all tender on me and asked, “Are you okay?”  One time I answered back, “Yes, dear” and I don’t think he asked me again.

I also had to get used to a new routine.  Apparently, hockey is kind of hard on one’s heart.  That’s why they have installed defibrillators in all the arenas in the city.  It’s not that hockey isn’t a good way to exercise, but when you go from racing up and down the ice to sitting on the bench, your heart rate rises and drops rapidly.  Well, that’s not ideal.

So, now I have to coast at the end of my shift, or walk a few laps around the bench before I sit down.  Let me tell you, that gets a few looks and comments from the other guys.

But in the end, I felt good that I got that first game under my belt.  It was great to be on the ice again.  Hockey has been the last thing I’ve returned to after my heart attack.  Now I’m back participating in everything I used to do.  I just do it at a slower pace, I think.  But maybe that will get better too.

Here’s the thing:  When we get off track with God in some way – whether it is sin in our life, or just a drifting away from Him – coming back to God may seem a little awkward, not as natural as it did before.  It may mean trying something different or new, or changing something in you life.  But coming back to God, seeking His forgiveness, knowing you are right with Him, feels good.

It gives you a peace, a comfort, a knowing you’re in the right spot, that you’re in a good place … you feel like you’re back where you should be.

Until Next Time!

Pastor Paul

Question:  What has caused you to feel distant from God?  What keeps you from moving closer to Him?  Leave your comment below.