Our mechanic is one of the best,
anywhere. He has a couple of employees
who seem to be almost as good. When a
person takes a car to them, it is fixed, at a reasonable price and they are
quickly back on the road.
I have always been amazed how he
can do it. He takes time to talk with
each customer, yet he gets the job done fast.
We started using him at the Sheriff’s Office in the early 90’s and no
matter what the problem we would get the car back that day AND we wouldn’t have
to take it back in – different from the other mechanics we have used.
The SO still uses him, UPS uses
him, the mail carriers use him, and I think there are a couple of more fleets
that rely on his expertise and quality of work.
He has kept our cars running for
long in good condition and some after they should have been scrapped – our ’89
Lincoln is a good example. For a couple
of years, I kept telling Carla it was dead, but he kept reviving it and she was
happy.
We purchased a Toyota several
years ago and he has done all the work on it.
For some reason it died on us a few weeks ago; they thought they knew
why, ordered the parts (took two weeks from back east) and sure enough that was
‘part’ of the problem – but it still isn’t running right and these poor guys are
tearing their hair out trying to figure out why.
They will, eventually, and we
will either have it back in good condition or have to scrap it – this is Carla’s
car - they don’t want to disappoint her and scrap it.
We shall see, but knowing how
good they are it is amazing that this has them so baffled. Hopefully, they will figure it out soon –
both for their mental health and so we have it for her to drive to work instead
of the newer Lincoln.
Hebrews 12:1-2 Wherefore seeing we
also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside
every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with
patience the race that is set before us,
2 Looking unto Jesus the
author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him
endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the
throne of God.
As I read these verses this
morning I was thinking about how we are all in a race. The finish line is the same for every
Christian, when we cross it we have life eternal with God. But the course varies for each person and
what may seem to be a straight course unobstructed by trials for one, is full of
pot holes, hills and curves for another.
For those whose course is
difficult with many complications it may be easy to look at another who seems to
be going through life without any struggles – and either begrudge them that easy
path, or resent God for making his so difficult.
Everyone is different. We may look at someone who we think is just
coasting along, unchallenged, but we really don’t know. Not all of satan’s darts are visible. Many people have learned to hide their
struggles and do not share them with others.
They have learned to trust in God and have a peace that cannot be
attained without that trust.
While other Christians may have
gone through a tremendous struggle before we came to know them and they have
learned how to deal with adversity as a Christian. They too have learned how to have
unconditional trust in Him.
I remember my first mentor. I learned later that the man was an alcoholic
and even though he was a leader in the church he continued to drink on the
sly. He had attained the status of a
millionaire twice over, but lost his fortunes due to his drinking. He had been hard on his children and wife; he
had renounced the church for years and had only come back in the last decade or
so.
Yet, when I met him, I saw a
wise man who had the knowledge of God and the answers to assist me in growing in
Christ. He took me under his wing and I
became a much stronger Christian because of him. If you had asked me at the time I would have
said the many didn’t have any challenges, he was a wise and disciplined man of
God.
And, such he had become, but he
had gone through a lot of brambles and side roads in his race before he came
back to Christ and dedicated himself to Him.
Some do not have the same
natural strength that others have, they are damaged by things most of us would
shake our head over and think nothing of it, but to them it is a race fraught
with danger. But here, too, God can make
them strong. We need to be observant and
when we realize they are struggling pray for and embrace them.
Our race cannot be truly
compared to another’s. We can gain
insights into how to rely on God’s by taking counsel, reading His Word and
watching others, but because each of us is different, so is the way we respond
to life’s challenges.
How we respond today, may not be
how we will respond tomorrow. We don’t
know what is going to come, we may be injured, be diagnosed with a terminal
disease, lose our spouse or children, or any number of things that happen in
this world.
It may take a bit to get our
bearings and to refocus on God; someone watching us may think we have slipped
and are losing the struggle, when it is but a fleeting time and we get back on
track quickly.
It is not easy to set aside the
past having sinned and hurt others or ourselves, but that is what we are to
do. Each day, even each hour is a new
opportunity to take a deep breath, dedicate ourselves to God and run the race He
has set up for us.
It is different for each of us,
but God is not. He cares for us, He
wants us to successfully live for Him and when we let Him, He infuses us with
His Holy Spirit and we find that even the potholes and hills have no bearing on
our life in Him.
Later, Art :-)
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