thoughts

by

What You Give Your Attention To Will Be Important To You

I believe something will fade in its importance to you when you stop paying attention to it. I stumbled on this principle this week.

IMG_4282

He’s gone, and he’s not coming back. No more Winston the turtle in our house. No more swimming frantically when someone passed by his tank. No more bashing into the tank glass when he would get scared off his rock.

Oh, he’s still living. He has a life expectancy of about 25 – 30 years, so I figure he has over twenty years of life left.

Winston is just no longer in our home. It was a bit of a sad day. Lily and Karlie drained the tank, packed up the filter and all the other paraphernalia, and took him to a new home.

You know, when my kids were young, when I came home they would come running to the door to see me and give me big hugs. Since they’ve grown up, it’s been Winston who has excitedly paddled at the edge of his tank when I came home.

It might have been that he wanted me to feed him instead of just being happy to see me … I can think what I want, can’t I? He can’t speak for himself.

Winston didn’t get all that much attention at our house. Karlie lives in another city, and Mike, though living in town, didn’t have much to do with him.

So it was down to Lily and I to take note of him and I mostly talked to him as I was passing by the living room.

That left Lily to care for him … and she did more than just talk to him. She fed him, cleaned his tank and filter, and took him out to let him walk around.

It’s Lily who had the hardest time saying good bye.

Lil would hold him and stroke the underside of his neck which he seemed to like. I guess there’s no more of that now.

He’s been gone less than a week and I still find myself looking over to that corner when I enter the living room to make sure I don’t scare him off his tanning rock.

Now he’s with a good family, with three kids to watch him, feed him, walk him, and give him more attention than we could.

But they need to be aware that Winston is a passive pet. And by that, I mean you have to go to him; he doesn’t come over to you to get petted or hugged or have his hand held. (I would hold his hand or paw after I fed him).

The poor little guy is gone. … But already our house is feeling like it’s back to normal.

Here’s the thing: You get attached to any pet, but the more interaction you have with that pet, the more important it will be to you, and the harder it is to say good bye. The same is true with attending church. The more interaction you have with Christ and His people, the more important they will be to you, and the harder it is to stay away. It’s easier to stay away from church when you are a passive attender. Make sure then you develop close connections with friends at church.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What is one excuse you’ve used to miss going to church in the last 3 months? I’d really like to hear from you; you can leave your comment below.

by

Why You Should Aways Read Labels

It’s always important to read labels on products you’re going to use.

iodine bottle

I remember the iodine bottle we used to have in our medicine cabinet when I was growing up. Even the dark brown colour of the bottle with that rubber eye dropper top made it look like there was danger.

But the real clue that this product was not to be fooled with was the skull and crossbones that was front and centre on the label or stamped right onto the glass bottle.

The bottom line is labels are meant to be read, like, for instance, the stuff I cleaned my trailer with last week. I got a big bottle of “Spray Nine” to clean the outside of our trailer/cottage. The trailer has vinyl siding and this stuff is apparently good for cleaning and even disinfecting.

I poured the liquid from the bottle into a pail. I intended to use a brush with an expandable long handle to scrub the trailer. But as I was about to start, my brother said they just did it by hand. He told me he got up on a ladder and with a cloth cleaned the trailer.

“Well,” I thought, “Okay, I’ll give it a try.” I grabbed a rag, dipped my hand into the bucket and started to work. By that time the bottle with the instructions and warnings had been tossed aside.

I didn’t think of looking at it. I just merrily started to clean. As I did, I periodically nicked my hands and noticed that those nicks kind of stung … which you might think would get me to at least glance at the bottle to see if there were any warnings.

But no, I was on a roll and I wasn’t going to stop to check some label.

I kept moving and completed the project in about three hours. Of course, the first thing I did when I was done was to wash my hands. But three hours in straight undiluted Spray Nine was now wreaking havoc on my hands.

Ladies, forget botox or liposuction, or having the skin on your face pulled back behind your ears. I have an easier solution – just soak your face in Spray Nine for about an hour!

The skin on my hands was so tight, it felt like my skin had shrunk at least one size and now didn’t fit my hands any more.

The little nicks I got from washing the trailer by hand stung constantly for lasted for two days. After about three days, my hands still felt weird but also were a little fuzzy. Apparently, my skin was peeling!

It took about six days before my palms and the backs of my hands stopped shedding and I felt like my skin was back to normal.

My trailer looks great though.

Here’s the thing: Reading labels helps us know how to handle products. In the US, LifeWay Research found that “while 90% of church-goers desire to please and honour Jesus in all they do, only 19% read their Bible every day. In Canada, The Canadian Bible Engagement Survey revealed that only 11% of Canadians read their Bible weekly, down from 28% in 1996. It’s difficult to know how to handle your Christian life without reading the Bible. We need to get better at that.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What kind of a plan do you have to keep yourself engaged in reading the Bible? I’d really like to hear from you; you can leave your comment below.

by

How To Prevent Making Multiple Mistakes

Have you ever made a mistake that led to another mistake that led to, well, a complete breakdown? I had that experience last week.

rockshox-tru axle

Lily had gone to Ottawa for the day taking my car, the one with the bike rack. I wanted to go for a bike ride at the end of my day so I had to put my bike in the trunk of the other car.

That’s normally not a problem; you just take the front wheel off the bike and slide the bike in.  For some reason, this time it was a problem.

I spent about a half hour trying to get my wheel off, and in the process I lost two ball bearings from the axle assembly and never actually got the wheel off the bike.

It was a brutal failure; I couldn’t believe it. I’ve take the front wheel off bikes dozens of times. But my new bike is a little different. No, it’s a lot different.

I would describe the differences but I would either hypnotize you in the process or put you to sleep – probably sleep would come first. Then you’d wake up and have an urge to bark at every bike you saw after that.

Taking the wheel off a bike with quick release should take about 30 seconds, at the most. I spent 30 minutes and never got it off. I could have used better lighting, but still.

I looked for videos on the internet to show me what to do. I examined the part and used an allen key/wrench to remove a part I should never have touched.

All the while, my neighbour, who works at the bike shop I go to, was right outside my garage cutting his grass. Did I ask him for help? Of course not; why would I do that? No, what I did was I took the axle apart and lost two very tiny ball bearings on my garage floor!

I never did go for that bike ride. Later that night I realized what I had done wrong. It should have taken me 15 seconds to get the wheel off, but it was too late now; I’d gone and lost some pieces.

So, here were my mistakes, if you’re counting . . .

I should have had better lighting and, along with that, I should have put on my reading glasses to get a better look at what I was doing.

I should have asked my neighbour for help. That was the dumbest thing I didn’t do. And I shouldn’t have taken apart the axle, especially standing in a garage.

I’ll tell you how the story turned out in my next blog.

Here’s the thing:  It is easy to make a mistake, but the smart thing is to correct that mistake before one mistake leads to another. The best thing we can do is look for someone who can help us. I know God is willing to help but He’s waiting to be invited. I also find that I will sometimes make more than one mistake before I ask Him for that help. So it’s what I don’t do that keeps me making mistakes . . . Seek God’s help first.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What do you do to keep from making multiple mistakes? I’d love to hear from you. Leave your comment below.

by

How To Find Inspiration When You’ve Lost Interest

My interest in the Stanley Cup playoffs has just dropped dramatically. I enjoy watching hockey but when you hate . . . well, “hate” is a strong word . . . “extremely dislike to the fullest extent” captures my emotions on this one . . . all the teams, you lose interest fast.

 

Shield-team-logos-sked-DL

We are about to enter the semi-finals and I don’t want any of the teams to win.

What I mean is that in every previous series I wanted the other team to win . . . except in the case of Montreal and Boston, and in that series I wanted both teams to lose.

Maybe they should make that possible in the Cup finals.

They could take a pole amongst the TV viewers and if two teams were really disliked by enough fans they both would get punted. Then the league could bring in a team that didn’t make the playoffs as a wild card.

They do that kind of thing on those reality shows and I believe it works quite well. It’s like giving another chance to a fan favourite that didn’t do so well in competition. Maybe that’s the only way the Leafs might make the playoffs again.

If I was a gambler, I’d be the worst gambler in the entire world. You see, I make my picks based on who I like, not necessarily on which team is better. This method is just slightly better than picking teams based on the colour or logo on the team’s jersey.

I know I should be happy there is still a Canadian team in the playoffs, but if the Parti Québécois  had have won re-election, would they really be a Canadian team?

I’m still a little suspect because the first game of the semi’s is in Montreal and is being played at 1 pm.

Hockey Night In Canada is supposed to be at night; it’s in the name. But those American networks love showing hockey games in the middle of the afternoon. I wonder if they will just sing the American national anthem too.

My big dilemma now is how do I program my red light. I have it mounted just above my TV and it goes off when a goal is scored for my team. I don’t have a “my team” left in the playoffs.

I have to pick a team or two, or maybe the best thing would be to turn my light off until the fall and save the batteries.

Maybe what I should do is take suggestions. Like a reality show, readers can comment on what team(s) they think I should program into my light and the team(s) with the most votes gets to sound off in my house every time they score.

Who knows? Maybe I can pick a winner that way.

Here’s the thing: Have you ever lost interest in doing your devotions, or in reading a particular book in the Bible?  You are not alone; it happens to everyone at some time when your Bible reading is dry and spending time with God is even dryer.  Often we pack it in for a while until something comes along to get us inspired again.  Well, don’t wait for new inspiration to come along.  Change things up; start reading a different book of the Bible, change what you pray, choose a different place to spend your time with God. Get inspired again.

That’s Life

Paul

Question: Send me your vote for the team I should program my light to for the remainder of the playoffs. Leave your vote in the comments below.

by

Why You Should Think Hard Before Getting A Tattoo

The other day I went biking and found a few wet spots on the trails. Once home, I took my socks off and was drawn to the contrast between the tattoo-like pattern on my legs and my lily-white feet.

photo copy

Besides the fact that my feet are in serious need of a tan, the pattern of the mud on my legs got me thinking about what I would look like with some body art on my legs.

I’ve seen people who try to cover much of their body with tattoos and sometimes I wonder, maybe they should have gone biking first to get an idea of what it would look like if it were permanent.

… you know, before it’s there for the rest of your days.

In my town there’s a tattoo place called “No Regrets – tattoo and removal”. They will put a permanent tattoo on you but if you change your mind, they can take a laser to you and remove it.

I still think it’s better to think through the whole thing very carefully before you take the plunge in the first place.

In my mind, I think it would be profitable for people not just to think how cool it would be to have some tattoo on their skin now, but to think what they might want 20 or 40 years from now.

You know when you’re about 70, your skin will get quite wrinkly and that once great looking tat of your ex-girlfriend right at the top of your shoulder will have stretched to cover the greater part of your upper arm!

Or that tattoo on your muscular chest that was a testimony to your love for your wife Mandy, now with your flab and folding skin, sometimes reads “I love you Man” when you sit a certain way.

There is something to say about those lick’em stick’em tattoos that we would get as kids. Moms didn’t really like them but at least they were coming off in a few days. And if Mom really didn’t like them she could scrub that part harder at bath time.

I’m just saying that doing something permanent should be thought out thoroughly so that you don’t have to find some guy who has a laser in his back room and is eager to use it on you.

For myself, I liked the fact that I could have my picture taken looking like I had just come back from “NY Ink” or “Don’t Tell Momma’s Tattoos” only to slip into the shower and remove it all with a little soap and water.

I got a little scraped up on my ride that day but those markings too will go away in a week. Two years ago at Christmas I bough the whole family fake arm tattoos (you can read that blog here), I enjoyed wearing my tattoos for a day but I can’t say that I’ve put the sleeve on since.

Permanent is a long time; it should require lots of thought and consideration before you make something permanent.

Here’s the thing: Considering a relationship with Christ is not something that should be done lightly. It is, after all, a permanent decision. It should be weighed and considered carefully because you, like Jesus Himself, will bear the marks for the rest of your life. I believe those marks are worth bearing.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What permanent thing have you done that you’ve had second thoughts about since?  I’d love to hear from you; leave your comment below.

by

The Answer To An Age-Old Automobile Controversy

I believe I’ve just uncovered an automobile mystery that has baffled mankind of a long time … at least since the passenger car was invented.

fender bender

In fact, I feel a little like Banting and Best when they discovered insulin, or when a scientist discovers some kind of breakthrough that will lead to possibly finding a partial cure for a certain strain of a multifaceted disease that continues to develop into different strains.

Whoa, I got a little dizzy just writing that.

Back to my discovery. I got in the car the other day and when I turned a corner the sun shining through the windshield almost blinded me. All I could see was a big red ball of light, so I quickly pulled down the sun visor to block it out.

When I did that, I stumbled onto something that could be a key to changing driving habits, all the way to changing insurance rates.

When I pulled down that visor, I almost scared myself into the next lane of traffic. The shield covering the visor mirror was gone. I went from looking into the centre of the sun to looking at two eyes staring at me and it freaked me out.

Fortunately, I controlled myself and stayed in my lane. But not everyone is as composed as I am when they drive. And here’s my discovery …

The mirror in the visor is a driving hazard and the ones who are guilty of using it are mostly women. Because of it, they are causing untold numbers of accidents.

Every time I look behind the visor, if my wife has been sitting in the seat before me, that mirror is visible. Imagine how many men have jerked the steering wheel to the left, when they’ve suddenly seen a pair eyes about six inches from their face.

Or how about the light that reflects off a woman’s bleached white teeth, hits the mirror and like a laser pointer temporarily blinds some poor unsuspecting driver behind her.  Another accident.

Or what about the women who’s putting on her makeup and drifts a little, causing the car beside her to swerve and careen into a light pole on the side of the road.

You see what I’m saying?

Statistics says that “80% of collisions and 65% of near crashes have some form of driver inattention as contributing factors” (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 2010).

I’m not saying women cause more fatal accidents. No, men are best at doing that. But statistics say that women are in more fender benders than men.

It’s that distraction factor, and a little piece of the solution could have something to do with the mirror that is on the back of sun visors.

This is still an early discovery. Now I just have to figure out how to get Lily to place the cover back over the mirror when she’s done.

Here’s the thing: God is trying to teach us all the time, but often we are distracted by other things. Being attentive to little things can lead you to discover something amazing about God that you haven’t noticed before. You can learn much about God from life around you. Don’t be so distracted by something that’s right in your face that you miss learning about God’s character and how that relates to you.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What discovery have you made recently about God? I’d love to hear from you; you can leave your comment below.

by

How To Develop Neatness in Your Children

I wonder if neatness is something that you grow into, just like you grow into new sizes of clothes and how you grow into a new set of teeth. It just happens as you get older.

Black & white (Ex)

My son, Mike, has been home for the last week, in-between places. The old apartment lease was up at the end of the month but the new place, which I like to call the “Park St. I Palace” (or PIP for short), was not ready yet.

I call the new place the PIP because it’s on Park Street and it’s all about being independent and out of all the grungy holes he’s lived in while at university. This place is palatial!

So with this transition period, Mike needed a place to store his furniture and stuff. The furniture we put in the garage, and the stuff, well, it took over three rooms in the house and then leaked a little more into the living room and a bathroom.

Whoa! I forgot what his room was like when he was in high school; now there’s just more of it. I remember being messy when I lived at home (and I wouldn’t say that I’m a neat freak now), but Mike takes messy to a new level of disorder.

Since I’m much neater now, I figure there is a chance Mike will become neater, too. You see, he just hasn’t grown into his neatness yet.

The thing is, you can predict when you grow into some things, like your new teeth. It starts happening around six and by about twelve you have your new set that will last you a lifetime … or until you get a few knocked out playing hockey or something.

But you can’ t predict when you’ll grow into your neatness. For our daughter Karlie, I think it was somewhere between her second and third year of university.

For me, my neatness didn’t come until after I was married, and then there was some mandatory instruction that came with it via my wife.

Possibly, it’ll take a similar scenario for Mike to really grow into his neatness … but he’s pretty remedial so I’m not sure it will be easy on her, whoever that might be.

Some good news for everyone involved in this transition was that the PIP was ready earlier than anticipated and he moved in on Saturday. I helped a little and what I liked right away was the smell of fresh paint when I walked in. The place was clean and bright.

As I looked around at how nice a spot it was, I wondered if he will grow into his neatness there in the PIP. You never know what might kick off a growth spurt.

The great thing for Lily and me is the dishevelled look of the house has returned to its original state. For Lily this is a blessing because now she’s just back to picking up after one mess monster instead of two.

Here’s the thing: We might think we will naturally grow in our relationship with God. But our human tendency is to grow apart from Him. We must make a conscious effort and take specific steps to grow closer to Christ. We must put ourselves in a place where we are learning and discovering and applying His principles to our lives – like being mentored, or joining a small group, or taking a class, or studying the Bible on your own.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question:  So what are you doing to grow in Christ? I’d love to hear from you; you can leave a comment below.

by

Why You Get Springtime Colds

There’s nothing worse than a springtime cold – partly because you’re not supposed to get a cold when the weather is warm (or just “warmer” this spring).

springtime cold

Colds are for the dead of winter when it’s nasty outside, -30 and everyone is trapped inside to spread their germs around like kids trading hockey cards in Johnny’s basement.

But I could see this one coming on. I could have predicted it. I let myself get run-down and then put myself in situations where I could easily catch what someone else was trying to get rid of.

I had a couple of late nights and then a trip to Toronto and back the same night. The next morning I had to be up for a seven o’clock meeting, so I only got a few hours of sleep.

I knew right then I was vulnerable. My office is rather frigid at this “in between seasons” time of year, so I was also a little chilled during the day.

Then on the weekend, at a family get together, there were several who were fighting off colds and other bugs, and Sunday I shook a lot of hands at church, hands that are filled with germs.

Monday I started sneezing and blowing my nose. I don’t think I’ve ever sneezed as much as I have this week. I would say for the first four days I must have sneezed about thirty times each day.

I normally sneeze in two’s. My brother’s sneeze pattern is about 4 or 5 in a row. This week I was sneezing like my brother, multiple sneezes almost every time.

Friday morning I woke up with a sore throat and I worried that I wouldn’t have a voice to preach on Sunday. I know my congregation prays for me … I’m just hoping they’re praying that I have a voice and not the other way around!

The last two days I really haven’t felt all that great. But this morning, after a very restless night, I thought playing hockey would be the ticket to get me feeling better.

There was no sore throat when I got up so I put on an extra sweatshirt and let my pores push all those bad bugs out of me while I sweat. I wrote about this method in my blog “Guaranteed To Cure The Common Cold” (you can read it here).

This is not the time of year to be having a lingering cold. It’s no fun BBQ-ing and not being able to taste the Montreal Steak Spice on your steak, or being able to smell the fresh breeze while you’re outside doing yard work.

No one wants to be looking out the window at the green grass, budding trees and feeling too lousy to get out there to do anything.

It’s a different story in the middle of the winter with the snow piled up to the window sills and the wind howling at the front door. When it’s like that you’re almost glad you don’t feel like going outside.

I guess I better pay closer attention to the needs of my body.

Here’s the Thing: Like a springtime cold, when you find yourself in a situation when you think, “This shouldn’t be happening to me”, take time to dissect it. God may be trying to teach you through your experience. Don’t just accept it without seeking to find what God wants you to learn from it.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What have you learned from a situation you didn’t think you should be in? I’d really like to hear from you. You can leave a message below.

by

Who To Deal With When Making A Purchase

The other day I needed to buy a present for my wife’s birthday. It was coming up soon – the next day, in fact – and there wasn’t much time left.

IMG_1924

All Lily wanted was end tables for the living room. I went straight to the Hudson’s Bay Company because it was close by, and they had living room furniture.

I found two different styles right away. One set was clearly on sale – that had my attention and interest. The other one I liked more, but the price was not to my liking.

It was just about then that a man in a suit came up to me and asked if he could help. We chatted for a moment and I inquired if the sale extended to the other style of end table. He did a quick check and, sure enough, it was on sale as well. My interest started to peak.

He said he could have the salesman pack it up for me, right then if I’d like, and I could take it home immediately. Those were magic words to me! I said, “Let’s do it.”

I left to move my car to the store entrance. When I returned, I noticed a picture of a man just inside the door who looked a lot like the man in the suit.

A salesman was waiting for me when I got to the furniture department. We sat down to do business but he didn’t seem all that happy about making the sale.

I mentioned that the man in the suit had said we could order in a new end table, and make an exchange later. That’s when I found out why the salesman wasn’t as excited about my purchase as I was.

He told me he was doubtful he could do that. A month ago a woman had ordered the same end table and there was still no sign of it coming in yet. He also said he didn’t like selling his floor models, because then he didn’t have anything to show people.

I thought to myself, “You have trouble ordering stuff in, but you don’t like selling floor models. What business are you in anyway?”

Instead, I asked him, “Then how come you’re selling this to me?” He answered, “You were dealing with the store manager.”

I joked, “So this is all his fault?” “Yes,” he said, “and if that woman who ordered this end table comes back, she will be mad when she finds this one gone.”

I smiled and said, “Just send her over to the store manager to explain.”

I got the impression this salesman was more interested in having his department filled with nice furniture arrangements than he was in selling anything in the store.

As I drove home I wondered if the store manager knew he had an employee who was not as eager to sell his merchandise as he was.

Here’s the thing: We just celebrated Easter – the greatest day of the year, because that is the day Jesus rose from the grave, having paid for the sins of the world. Jesus now offers to apply His payment to your sins, and your friends’ sins. If you’ve had your sins paid for by Jesus, then don’t be like that salesman who likes his store the way it is. Be like the store manager who is interested in letting others have what he has. Let others know they can have their sins paid for, too.

That’s life!

Paul

Question:  Have you found you are more inclined to keep your relationship with Christ more to yourself?

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

by

How To Save Money On A New BBQ

I made a very big mistake three years ago when I bought my last barbecue. It came with a cast iron grate.

BBQ grill

At the time, I didn’t know the difference between the cooking surfaces. I just thought I got ripped off with a cheap grate that wouldn’t last long. My grate needed some help, and by that I mean some oil (not 10W30) spread on the surface to keep it from rusting.

I wished I had a stainless steel grate, or porcelain-covered grate – nothing sticks to those surfaces. As for my cast iron, everything stuck to it.

And this year when I popped the top on my BBQ, the grate was all rusty. I figured it needed to be thrown out.

But not so fast … I learned something that not only saved my BBQ, but may save yours as well.

You see, you can’t just go out and buy a new grate for your BBQ. No – the manufacturers have plotted together –  the best you can do is get an adjustable, fit-all-sizes-of-cooking-areas grate. … They are useless; don’t bother buying them.

The manufacturers just want you to buy a whole new barbecue. We should all be buying stocks in Weber, Napoleon or Broil King – it’s a good racket.

Actually, I found out cast iron grates are arguably the best. But wouldn’t you know it, the guy who doesn’t like maintenance gets the grill that needs the most maintenance.

The instructions called for my grate to be seasoned. My first thought was to sprinkle Montreal steak spice all over it. But that’s not what they meant.

I found a youtube video from Ballistic BBQ (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U8sRDwbYra8) that showed me what to do and why. The video is 13 minutes long but worth it for me.

I found out the oil needs to bake on to the grill like a protective coating. And to get that coating, you have to apply the oil many times.

So I scraped, washed and towel-dried my grate. Then I started to apply the oil. I used peanut oil like the guy in the video suggested, but you can use canola oil another high heat oil.

It took me two and a half hours, keeping my BBQ on low heat and applying the oil every half hour. When I was done that grate was black and looked totally coated.

… Except I’m not really done. I now have to keep it up! When I finish cooking on my grill, I have to put some oil on it. And when I go to grill the next time, I have to burn off the stuff I put on last time and put a fresh coating on again.

The nice thing is the meat doesn’t stick. It’s like trying to catch a greased pig; the surface is all slippery-like. For a guy like me with an aversion to maintenance, this is a challenge but one that I think I will try to maintain, if you know what I mean.

Here’s the thing: There may be times when you think that you have failed so badly that God would have no recourse but to get rid of you, like a rusty grate. But God can recondition you and season you for ministry, if you’ll let Him. Why not allow Him to apply His treatment to you?

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What has kept you from letting God recondition your life?

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