Schooled Again!

Yesterday was one of those days. My dogs got me out of bed, even before the Sun decided to join us, not caring a bit that I was full-on in the throes of a hangover -- a Disneyland hangover – which had been induced by walking 8 miles in the 80+ degree “Autumn” heat, interspersed with head-spinning, stomach-churning “Thrill Rides” and too many food items that I normally wouldn’t ingest. In fact, I’m still feeling the effects this Friday morning.  

Funny aside: Upon arriving home Wednesday Night, following the full day of Disneyland and Disney's California Adventure, my 90-year old mother asked me what my favorite ride was, and without skipping a beat, I deadpanned; “the ride home.” 

The Disney Hangover must be genetic -- it's all because of my parents. Yep, I'm putting the blame on them completely. It's 100% due to my folks... Father Time and Mother Nature.

Anyway, my slow-motion morning was interrupted by a ringing doorbell which was immediately drowned-out by our very own Paw Patrol, providing awareness to the person on the other side of the front door (and the entire neighborhood) that they are on duty. 

That person at the door happened to be from SoCal Gas. They had discovered a small leak at our meter and he was going to fix it. It only took him about an hour or so and he was done.  However, because of the leak fix at the meter, SoCal Gas would be sending someone by to check every gas connection in the house. 

While waiting for the gas Inspector to show up, Karlene hollered at me from the upstairs that my phone keeps going off. Several calls had been missed and 3 voicemails had been left from my son’s apartment. My son always calls me (and his mother) frequently – just never from his landline. So, something was up.

It was an emergency, a calamity, an earth-shattering event. He had broken his mobile phone. He can’t live without it – what will he do?! “I need to have a phone, dad!” Trying to calm him down, I told him we would take care of it and not to freak-out. Fortunately, his classes on Thursdays are afternoon and evening only, so I told him that I would drive over to Long Beach, pick him up and take him to the phone store at around 11:00am.

Just then, the doorbell rang again which set the Paw Patrol in motion again (and drove the neighbors up the wall again). It was the SoCal Gas Inspector. I was pleasantly surprised that he had arrived so quickly. I apprised him of the canine situation and then proceeded to put 2 of the dogs in the back yard, while Karlene took the other one and headed for the Groomer.

I then brought the inspector into the house and led him around to all the gas outlets. The fireplace was first. It was a fail. At least it was a minor fail. Next, we went to the kitchen and checked the new Range. Pass! Yay me! He then complemented me on our beautiful and modern-looking 1 year-old kitchen. Double yay me! Next was the gas Dryer in the laundry room. I was concerned, because while we were at Disney the day before, our daughter came by to check on the dogs and brought her laundry. She still doesn’t know how to use the lint trap (as she’s only been doing laundry for a dozen years or so) and I hadn’t checked it before the inspector arrived. Now I’m sweating bullets. Pass. Whew! I was relieved.

I took him into the garage, where the tank-less water heater resides. Now, due to my previous interactions with my Plumber about this water heater, (which was originally installed improperly by another plumbing company), I’m a bit anxious of this inspection. Turns out that I had good reason to be concerned. Fail, big time. The unit has exhaust issues and is not properly vented. Violation. Dangerous. Could cause an explosion. He shuts the unit down and red-tags it. I wasn’t surprised -- I wasn't happy, either. He apologized and told me the obvious – to get a plumbing/heating specialist out to repair the exhaust issue, a.s.a.p. Ironically, the reason it got red-tagged was that two different plumbing/heating professionals had previously made a mess of it!

Once finished, he had me sign off on his inspection and went on his way. I jumped in my car and went on my way, too. Headed to pick up my son and go get him a new phone.  Now I must interject that I have a great plumber. Unfortunately, though, I was unable to get ahold of my plumber.

By the time I had navigated the Great Phone Calamity of 2018 and dropped Zachary off back at his college, it was early afternoon. Karlene had left something in my car and so I swung back by the office to give it to her and I brought along a late lunch also. By the time I got back to the house, it was around 3:30pm.

When I came into the house, my mother started stressing about the lack of hot water and though she didn’t need it right then, she was going to be needing that hot water that night to wash her clothes and take a shower. “We’ve got to have that hot water, Tim! You’ve got to get that fixed!”

Now, in our neck of the woods, good plumbers are at a premium and are difficult to get on an emergency basis. You can get a plumbing company (insert name of choice) to come out on an emergency, but I’ve been there, done that, and purchased the T-shirt. I needed that T-shirt, too, because of the fact that I lost my shirt when they billed me! So I waited for my plumber and waited some more.  

After feeding my dogs their dinner, it was about 5pm and still I’ve heard nothing. I said to myself, “drastic times call for drastic measures.”  So I went into the garage and sized up the situation -- the job that would need to be done to get the tank-less water heater safely operational. Then I said to myself, “you can do this!” Full of faith and the knowledge that my wife wouldn’t be home until at least 9pm, I headed off to the Lowes home improvement superstore.  

With my plastic bag full of freshly-picked connecters and adjustable vent pipe, I set about to get it fixed and fixed right. I tried this configuration and that. Added and removed vent pipe. No matter what I tried, I just couldn’t get it to work. So, I washed up, jumped back in the car and headed back to Lowes. I just need one connecter/spacer of a certain size, I had figured. Just in case my math was more of the Common Core variety, I bought two different spacers and headed back home.

Now hours into it, I am starting to feel the pressure. After much sweat, trial and error, I realize that the spacers, that I just bought, aren’t going to work. Nothing is fitting in the space and weird configuration needed to make it work. A thought pops into my head that tells me, “If the installer couldn’t do it and the plumber that you hired to fix it couldn’t do it, what makes you think that you can do it?!” I said to myself, “Get behind me, Mind Monsters! I can do ALL things through Christ who strengthens me.” Then and there, it hits me. In the midst of my frustration, up on a ladder in the corner of the garage, with aching back and cramping hands, I stop everything.

After a long pause and I deep breath, I did what I should’ve done from the start. I prayed. I asked God for help. I prayed, “Jesus, please help me to figure out how to make this work.” In a manner of seconds, it dawned on me what I needed to do. I went and got a pair of pliers and set to doing what needed to be done and “Bam”, just like that, the whole thing went right together. I taped all the joints with aluminum tape and that was that. I had a safely-working-with-no-leaks exhaust vent – and one that would make Dr. Seuss proud, to boot.

After all of that, I wondered, “Why did I wait so long to ask God to help?” Why didn’t I pray first? I could have saved myself a lot of time, stress, and struggle, not to mention an extra trip to Lowes. All for the asking is ours, but we don’t ask. The Lord is near, but we do not call on Him. In the Bible, James had it right when he said, “you do not have, because you do not ask” (James 4:2).

Schooled again!

Yep, I’m still in school. Even at my age, I’m still learning.

I know I need help. I know I need the Lord. I know He loves me. I know He is there for me. I know that he answers.

I just need to ask.

Help me Lord.

Seasonal Surprises

"There's a reason for the sun shiny sky
And there's a reason why I'm feelin' so high
Must be the season..."


Several years ago, I spent a few days in Colorado Springs, CO, on business. It was late Summer and i was enjoying the near-perfect weather in the high 70's. It was simply beautiful and I was having a great trip. The day before I was to fly back home, I played in a golf tournament wearing a hat and sunscreen -- appreciating the wonderful vistas of the majestic Rocky Mountains contrasting the clear blue skies above and the fertile green valley below me on an incredible God-painted canvas that i was privileged to personally witness. It was in a word, picture perfect.


I slept soundly that night, entranced in the sweet Summer aroma of nature. The sights, sounds and scents of that day lingered on my mind pleasantly to the next morning. Upon waking at the Holiday Inn that next morning, I opened the shades to discover a blanket of white had covered the ground as snow was falling from the sky!


The same sky that, a day earlier, had been blue, beautiful and bright, had suddenly turned dark and ominously threatening. Had the season changed? No, it was still late-Summer. Had my position changed? No, I was in the same place that I had been for three days. Had I changed? I wondered, so I pinched myself and let out an "ouch!" I was still the same. I wasn't dreaming.


In life, there are "seasonal surprises." Everything is beautiful, everything is going well, you are in the right place at the right time and all-of-a-sudden, wham! Suddenly, you find yourself in the middle of a storm.


When this happens -- and it will -- remember the season. Your season. Know this, the "surprise" will pass. It didn't come to last, it came to pass! So some snow fell on your Summertime. You'll be back in the sunshine again, and soon.


Don't allow the "surprises" to spoil your season. 
Don't let them throw you off your game or derail your faith.
Remind yourself that God is for you and God is in you. 
That means God is with you -- 
and God with you, supersedes any of life's surprises.


"I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished" - Philippians 1:6

The Parable of the Pencil

I am presently sharing a series at Cornerstone entitled "Under Construction." The premise is that we are all works in progress. We are not perfect, but are being changed into the image of the Lord from glory to glory. The processes of life are in place to help us progress and become what God intends us to be.

I came across the following parable while researching for the series on the Internet and found it to be a wonderful illustration to share. Therefore, I used it do drive home the 2nd message of the series and, as a result, have had many requests for a copy of it – so I am posting it here.

I would love to credit the author of this piece, but as far as I can tell, its authorship is unknown. FYI: The theme of the message (to which this parable was the main and closing illustration) was “Why Am I Here?” Before I spoke, our Usher Team passed-out brand new, unsharpened pencils to everyone in the audience. The crowd was somewhat confused by this “gift,” but it all made sense at the end of the message and drove home the point quite dramatically.

The Parable...

The Pencil Maker took the pencil aside, just before putting him into the box. There are 5 things you need to know, he told the pencil, before I send you out into the world. Always remember them and you will become the best pencil you can be.

1) You will be able to do many great things, but only if you allow yourself to be held in someone's hand.

2) You will experience painful sharpening from time to time, but you'll need it to remain useful and become a better pencil.

3) You will be able to correct mistakes you will make.

4) The most important part of you will always be what's inside.

5) On every surface you are used on, you must leave your mark. No matter what the condition, you must continue to write.

The pencil understood and promised to remember, and went into the box with purpose in its heart.

The Pencil is YOU. If you always remember the 5 Principles of the Pencil, you can – and will -- live a useful and fulfilled life.

1) You will be able to do many great things, but only if you allow yourself to be held in God's hand. The pencil can be used to make works of art and tell wonderful stories, but only when placed in the right hands. By itself, it can do nothing.

2) You will experience painful sharpening from time to time, by going through various problems, difficulties and trials, but the sharpening is necessary in order to become a stronger and more useful person.

3) You will be able to correct mistakes you might make or grow through them. You have been divinely fitted with an eraser, called “grace.” The Bible claims that "none are perfect, no not one."

4) The most important part of you will always be what's on the inside. “Man looks on the outward appearance, but God looks on the heart.” Jesus on the inside -- working on the outside.

5) On every surface you walk, you must leave your mark. No matter where you are or what the situation may be, you are leaving a mark. What type of mark are you leaving with your life?

God designed each of us for a purpose. The reason that we are on this earth is to fulfill the purpose for which God made us. We are fearfully and wonderfully made – and when we allow ourselves to be placed in God’s hand to be used by him, great things are – and will be - the result.

I encourage you today to live the life that God created you to live. Be the gift that God created you to be. Put yourself in the Master's hand and bring glory to your Creator by making your unique mark upon this world.