Hurry Up - And Slow Down

Have you ever been in too much of a hurry?  On the highway I watch people go by me at great rates of speed and I assume they have not planned their time well.  I’m doing 110 and I have no idea what speed they are going. Well, I ended up being in a hurry the other night. The evening started out normally. I had a mental list of things to do and I had been to one store, wandered about and then focused to find what I was looking for.  Still lots of time before I planned on being home. After checking out and saying to the clerk, “Have fun.” I started home. Half way home I remembered I had forgotten to fill up the tank for the next morning. So I turned around and topped it up. As I turned out of the station I thought I might as well go to another store across the road and just look for a couple of other things I was considering. After all, I was in no hurry. 
Again I just wandered around, found the things I needed and even found the same items I bought at the previous store at a much lower price. Purchased those items as well with the intent of taking the others back the following day. By the time I checked out and said, “Have fun”, time was more than gone and I started to hurry on my way. In my rush, I almost missed something.
Seems everyone has a cell phone now. Everyone from ten year olds to seniors.  So it is not unusual to see almost everyone doing something or other with their phone on the street. As I pulled up to the stop sign, there beside me was a mother with her daughter in a buggy. She was doing something with her phone. Didn’t take long for me to realize, she was taking a picture. I thought, must be something more important than taking a picture of the gas bar. I looked around in the direction she was facing to behold the most amazing sunset. And to think, I would have missed it in my haste had I not noticed her taking that picture.
Here is a thought. As we look to God, maybe, just maybe, we could be the one to make others stop for a minute and look to the God we love and His Son, Jesus Christ.  As we take a picture of God with our hearts and mind, we can also turn others to the reality of His presence, grace and care. And you know, too often, we are all in too much of a hurry to notice God is still there creating beauty just for us to see.

Something to think about.
Rob

No Luck At All

Here is a statement I believe we dwell on maybe a couple of times a year at the most. Should probably be more but that’s life. I guess it has something to do with taking things for granted.  Okay, the statement is, “We are so very fortunate.” This statement can stand on it’s own or be attached to some object, time or place. I guess most people would say something like, “How lucky I am.” I don’t think luck has anything to do with it. In fact I looked up the word luck, just to see what it said. Webster reads, “a force that brings good fortune or adversity”.  Which means, there is to many everyday people, either good luck or bad luck. I still don’t think there is anything called luck. If I miss getting in a car accident by a couple of seconds, some say they were lucky while I say, God is watching over me. So I would say that the person that wins the lottery, it is a case of having the winning numbers. Maybe the truth is found in the funny saying, “if I had any luck at all it would be not luck”.
So what is this force Webster must be talking about? Wether he would admit it or not I believe that Webster’s definition admits to a force greater then ourselves.  I call that force, GOD!
You see, I believe that our every step is watched by God. He knows of our goings and comings. He knows everything about our lives past and present and He knows what is ahead for each of us. Yes, God controls the vastness of space with all it’s in-numerable stars and planets, but He alone watches over each and every one of us. No heavenly bodies collide without His knowledge and we indeed are fortunate to have God there watching the collisions found in our lives.
Which gets me to the point.  I will say, how fortunate we are to have a God that loves us and cares for us and watches our every step through life. He alone counts the hairs on our heads. Some less then others. He saw us as we were being formed in our mother’s womb. He is with us in our joys as well as in our trials. Just as Jesus said to Nathaniel, “I saw you while you were still under the fig tree before Philip called you.”, He sees you right now where you are. We are so fortunate to have God right here and right now. . .
And He walks with me and He talks with me
And He tells me I am His own
And the joy we share as we tarry there
None other has ever known. 
Something to think about.
Rob

Smile!

Her smile was so infectious as she shared with me that her favourite colour was pink. She was wearing pink so I assumed it when I asked. She kept on smiling. I saw her a few more time that day and each time it was a wonderful smile that made me smile even more. Late in the day I talked to her once more time when I saw her carrying a prize she had won. The smile was contagious and bigger than ever. And so was mine when she told me of the games she played and how she won her prize.

I wonder, how long has it been since we smiled like that? I mean, really smiled? A joy that comes from deep down inside of you and bubbles up making itself know on your face and lips?
As you seek to try and answer that, ask yourself the other question that attaches itself so tightly to it, “And what made you smile?”
Just yesterday I saw many people smiling. We had a big party at the church and at that party I noticed the smiling faces of so many children. The children would win a game, or climb in the air bounce with total abandonment. They know how to play, smile and have fun as they laugh and just enjoy what is happening in the here and now.
The outcome of this experience of laughing and smiling and getting their prize was, the parent smiled along with them. Let's just say, they may have relived something they remember happening to them short years ago. Or maybe it was just the innocent smile on their childs face that brought their own smile. Then it snowballed. From this came more smiles from the people who were volunteering to host the games, the planners, the musicians and even the seniors who were sitting quietly taking this all in. As I continued around the building I notice something amazing. Almost everyone was smiling. It was contagious. It was infectious. It was downright unavoidably spreading from one person to the next, to the next.

All of this was going on around the outside of the church at the party. The question to myself and to you is, why can’t this happen in the church? Oh, I know people smile and laugh before and after service. But what about the excitement, enthusiasm and joy of worshiping a God who is always smiling down on us?
My answer is, it can, and it must. So bring your smile with you to church. Bring your enthusiasm, bring with you the joy of the Lord and your smile might catch on with everyone else.

Something to think about
Rob

Just Another Ordinary Miracle Today

There is a big beautiful world out there to explore. Which means, we can no longer say, it is just another day. Just look out your door some morning this week. Take a look around at all the children who are just back into school for yet another year. Realize that this is not just another year for them, or for us. This will be a time of new horizons, new and exciting opportunities that will present themselves to our children.  All our children will be acquiring and learning new things. And we can to. We call it growing in knowledge and insight.
One student said to me they were not looking forward to the new school year.  I asked why.  Silly me, I should have known. Their reply was, “Last year in grade one I didn’t learn anything new and I think this year will be more of the same”.  Really?
I wish I could stand on top of the front of every school in this city, province and scream at the top of my lungs, “Grab hold of all that life is offering you and don’t let go!” Just think about it for a minute.  Well, a few minutes. Think back to your first day at school. The excitement, the anticipation. Even looking back now I realize it’s like watching a young child who sees something for the first time. Show that child a new toy and realize this is the first time they have ever laid their eyes on it or their hands or their mouths. Listen to me, there are always new things to see that we have never seen before. They are right where you live as well as half way around the world. We lost a close friend to cancer recently. Knowing time was short she packed the last few years of her life with new experiences all over the world.
Just recently I heard that one of the most beautiful churches in our city is on the verge of closing. Every time I drive by it I want to go in and see what it looks like and appreciate it’s beauty that I have never seen before. This past summer I had opportunity to sit and watch a complete nest of flying ants hatch and come out to dry before flying off in search of some wood to eat. Never saw that before.  Or how about going out in our back yard and seeing thousands of migrating butterflies envelope our trees for an hour.
I also see something new each and every day as I continually seek new revelation from God.  I open my bible and find things I have never seen before. It gave me pause this last week as I was preparing my sermon on the feeding of the five thousand. Two questions come to me as never before.  And here they are; after Jesus fed the five thousand, how many went up to Jesus and said thank you? And the second, did anyone thank the boy with the five barley loaves and the two fish?
Jesus said, seek and you will find. Today, open yourself up to Jesus showing you something new and when you see it, say thank you. He will smile back and say,”you’re welcome”.
Something to think about.
Rob