Is everything in place?

The problem was obvious and the solution was simple – or so I thought.   

The door of the fridge had been like this for the last few weeks and they had been propping it up with a small piece of cardboard.  

A small screw that held the hinge had broken, the hinge had dropped and so had the door.  This caused a large gap which made everything go haywire and the fridge couldn’t do its job and everything inside would have been ruined.  All it needed was the right screw. 

So I emptied the fridge, laid it on its back, located the problem, fitted the screw and that was that…except it wasn’t. 

A couple of hours later the same thing happened and there was the door, hanging off again! I realised my mistake, the screw I had fitted looked OK but it wasn’t up for the job; something larger and stronger was needed.

Something, that could stand the test of time and not let me (and everyone else) down.

I fitted the larger, stronger screw and sure enough, everything was now OK.  

This made me think about the problem we all share; the gap between who we want to be and who we really are. 

You and I know that we fall short of our own expectations and the Bible reminds us that we fall short of God’s expectation for us (Romans 3:23).  This ‘gap’ causes us all sorts of problems and the contents of our lives and the impact we cause have the potential of being totally ruined.  

This Easter reminds us that there is an answer, you cannot choose a ‘screw’ of your own making it has to be strong enough for the task.

All you have to do is ask and He will hold your life in place.

Far better for you!

It was dropped at my front door and I was quite excited. 

The side of the box described it as “Wrought Iron & Teak Park Bench” and I thought that it would fit really well in ‘pride of place’ in the corner of the front garden. 

I knew that it was in pieces and it was raining when it was delivered, so I waited for a couple of days before assembling it.  Everything was going fine until I opened the box. 

All the pieces were present and correct; the legs were elegant and more than suitable but then came the problem.

The only way I can describe the back of the bench (the bit that everyone would see) is to say that it was a reject from the house of the Seven Dwarves (and not the digitally remastered version!)

In the midst of a beautiful timber frame was this hideously, hand-painted conglomeration of brightly coloured flowers and patterns.  It seemed to scream loudly at you as you tried to look away – you didn’t want to look…but you couldn’t help yourself! 

After my initial shock, the laughter set in and I proceeded to share the fun as I showed my kids, my wife and anyone else who has visited my garage since.  (It could make an ideal gift for someone this Christmas!!) 

Most of the time when you buy something it will meet your expectations, occasionally an item will greatly exceed them, but now and then you find something, like my park bench, that falls dreadfully short of the mark.   

In 29 years of following Christ I have found that He has exceeded my expectations on a consistent and regular basis. 

So I would encourage you to not settle for a gaudy or badly designed life, when Christ has something far better for you!

Which lane will you take?

The three options were before me, I had to make a choice but I was not sure which way to go – I could see the signs at the end of Hornsby pool – “Face pace swimmers”, “Medium pace swimmers” & “Slow pace swimmers” but which was I? 

I know I swim OK but how do I fare in respect to everyone else?  No idea!  

If I started in the fast lane, I thought, I would probably be embarrassed as ‘Thorpelike’ individuals glided past me; if I chose the slow lane, I would probably be held up and not able to enjoy my swim.   So I chose the centre lane.

This worked well for the first 500m but as I continued to swim my pace slowed and lap by lap, the people sharing my lane were consistently approaching.  I wasn’t getting any faster, in fact, I was slowing down. So I had to change lanes for the last few laps.     

There is no shame to swimming in any lane of the pool but it made me think about how important it is in life to have an accurate understanding of who you are and what you are capable of.  

There are things that you can do and things that you can’t. You are better than others in some areas but there are things in which you are ‘outshined’.   

When it comes to spiritual things, which lane do you swim in? Or maybe you don’t swim at all?  

Paul spoke about this in the Bible in the book of Romans 12:3 “Do not think you are better than you are. You must decide what you really are by the amount of faith God has given you.”

Everyone has been given a measure of faith, I encourage you to keep swimming! 

Do something new!

I don’t know about you but I like to eat Corn Flakes late at night. 

This might not seem like the appropriate time to eat corn flakes but it really works for me.  In fact I don’t really like eating them in the mornings at all – I don’t know why I just do! 

It is very easy to get stuck in a pattern of behaviour that doesn’t really reflect who you are.  Corn Flakes might have been designed as a breakfast cereal but there is no ‘law’ that states that they must be consumed prior to 10.30am…so I encourage you to eat them when you like. 

There are a lot of things that people get ‘traditional’ about that were never really designed to have traditions attached. 

Some people vote a certain way because that is the way they always have, some people park in a certain area of a carpark because they always park, some drink the same beer, buy the same car, go on holidays at the same place. 

I’m all for doing things you like to do and doing them regularly, I just think that sometimes we are limited in our experience of life because we fall into needless traditions.  

Many people have a traditional view of God and Spiritual things – they see them limited to a certain day at a certain place and I think that this is a tradition that stifles the freedom and enjoyment that the Lord had in mind.   

So my encouragement to you today is to try corn flakes after 10pm and to allow the Lord Jesus some room to do something new your life right now!  

No longer short!

If it wasn’t true I would be about 3 metres tall!
 
Jesus said “And which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature?” (Luke 12:25) 
 
We all have times when circumstances press in around us and trials and troubles come knocking at the door.  At those times we have to choose what we are going to do.
Unfortunately, I find that most of the time my default position is to worry about what could happen and what may be waiting around the corner.  This leads to nights where you toss and turn, mornings when you wake up with the weight of the world on your shoulders and, afternoons where the muscles in your neck are stiff and sore from the tension you have been carrying around.   One thing I’ve noticed…I am never any taller at the end of the day!
 
It is easy just to tell people not to worry but when they have significant concerns they need more than that.  It is like telling a starving child to ‘be fed and full’ or a homeless person to ‘be warm and comfortable’ if you don’t offer them anything tangible then what help are you really being at all?
 
Jesus doesn’t offer you ‘words’ today: He delivers so much more than that.  He gives us an answer to our worries, a solution to our concerns and real comfort in the midst of our isolated pain.
 
“Look at the birds of the air, they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?”                      Matthew 6:26 
 
Why don’t you stop worrying and seek Him for the peace you need?

How are your warning gauges?

As the light began to blink, my heart began to sink. 

I thought that I might have had a major problem but then I remembered that it had been quite a while since I checked my oil.  I felt bad because I should have remembered to do it but I guess that is what the warning light is for!  So I pulled up at the next service station and popped the bonnet to find that I was very low on oil. 

My car is getting older and I should probably look after it just a little more but I am really glad for the warning lights! 

Warning lights are great, they let you know when things are too hot, when things are too cold, when things are getting empty or when you are going too slow or too fast.  Modern cars have more and more warning lights, gauges and beeps to try and make you safe so that you arrive at your destination intact.  

People are not built with warning lights that flash or gauges which give you an empirical output of how you are travelling – but there are ways of telling when things are not quite right.  

I regularly like to do an inventory my reserves and resources…I have learnt that if I push too hard for too long, I end up in a big mess.

I check my emotional warning light.

I check my physical warning light.

I check my Spiritual warning light.

If any are flashing – I pull over and make sure that I get the input I need. 

How are your gauges going so far this year? Is it time for a top up?

Lost or forgotten?

I don’t know where it is! 

Have you looked everywhere? Yes!

Have you looked in the car?  Yes!

Have you looked on the desk? Yes!

Have you checked your pockets from yesterday? Yes!   

This is a conversation that, I am sorry to admit, has happened more than once in my home.  Usually it takes place early in the morning or just before I am rushing out to an important meeting – the item that is lost might change but the rest of the pattern remains the same.  I rush from room to room looking for what has been eluding me and eventually I find it by either retracing my steps or finally opening my eyes.  

It is not so much that it is lost – I just have forgotten where I left it!   

I still have in my possession a number of items from when I was a small child – other things I had have been lost forever.  Some I will never see again, others may still turn up (especially if I ever get around to cleaning out my garage!).

When it comes to you… what do you still have, what have you misplaced and what have you lost?

 I’m not only talking about possessions…what about things like hope, faith, joy and love?  

I have found that my wife is really helpful when it comes to finding my keys and mobile phone but on the bigger issues I am glad that the Lord Jesus weighs in!  

Whatever you may have lost, He is able to renew.  All we have to do is ask for His help!

The first time you try!

“Clutch in… change into 1^st… hold the hand-brake…let the clutch out slowly… give her a few revs…OK… try again…”

I had the awesome opportunity today of giving my son his first driving lesson.  Even though it is much easier to learn on an automatic he is determined to master the challenges of a manual!

So today was the day and we laughed (and lurched) our way through our first lesson.   

After an hour it felt like I had been the recipient of a vigorous back massage and I had developed a severe case of whiplash!    

It was a really great experience…a little bit of stress but mostly enjoyment: However, it did make me think about all that is involved in an action that I now do almost without thinking. You are probably like me; you don’t think about how to drive, you just drive.    There are so many things that we do now, that were once new and uncomfortable actions for us. But after a little practice they become second nature and we just do them without much thought.     

So with the start of the New Year comes an opportunity for you to decide to try something that you might not be all that comfortable with.   

When was the last time you prayed?  When was the last time you really spoke to God?   Let me break it down for you…just like I did for my son this morning.   

·   Believe that He is there & listening

·   Believe that He is able to make a difference in your life

·   Speak out what you need to say

·   Expect a response!        

(Hebrews 11:6)  Not everything feels natural the first time you try…but keep going, I guarantee that it is worth it!

The Greatest Gift?

The choices for some people are endless. 

It takes no time at all to find a gift; the problem is which one do you choose? 

For others the choices are not so vast but eventually you come up with something that is just right.  But for a small group of people it seems that there is nothing that really says what you want to say and no single item which achieves what you want to achieve.  Even the trusty gift certificate doesn’t seem to fit! 

What is it about those people? You know them well enough to be wanting to give them a gift, you like them enough to be giving them a gift…is it that they already have too much or that they really don’t have any other interests that you can be part of?  

Whatever the reason, I hope that you don’t give into the temptation to just buy anything as the Christmas Eve desperation begins to loom. 

I hope that you can find the ‘perfect’ gift and not the mass produced set of six china canisters with elves and mushrooms that we received one Christmas! 

This Christmas I hope that you can find the words and the emotion to communicate your love, affection and appreciation for those around you. 

And I hope you can do it with a gift that makes the recipient understand how you really feel. Of course the greatest gift needs to be remembered this Christmas as always, it needs to be cherished as always.  It is a gift fit for every one of us and tailor-made to suit us in every way.   

Enjoy opening your gifts this year and don’t forget the joy, peace and love of the coming of Christ this Christmas!

Just one more!

One person is normal and acceptable, two people if you are willing to help someone out but beyond that seems over the top!  

 I am currently in the Philippines on a missions trip and yesterday I was taken for a ride on the local transport.  There were 5 of us on a small motorcycle with a large sidecar attached.

A Yamaha 125 was never designed to cope with that sort of abuse!   

It was amazing to listen to the straining of the motor as this bike worked well beyond its capacity to struggle up the rocky paths and then fly down the other side at amazing speeds of up to 40km/hr!  

The thought crossed my mind of all the work opportunities we could create if we abandoned our penchant for safety standards – imagine the growth industries of paramedics, health insurance clerks and funeral directors! 

As we drove along the road I was amazed that we actually stopped to pick up more passengers!  It seemed that there was always room for one more.  The reality was that at some point this poor little motorcycle was not going to be able to go on but you had to admire the faith of the driver! 

This little experience made me think about the power of the Gospel – the good news message of Jesus Christ. 

Literally millions of people have taken up the offer to be transported by its power and purpose, to be delivered to a better destination.   

The powerful truth is there is yet room for one more! 

The Gospel has not yet even approached its ‘maximum capacity’ so there is definitely room for you.   

So – jump aboard!