I'm Pretty Much a Communication Expert

If you are married, you will probably relate to what happened with my wife and me today. We had to drive about 45 miles (one way) during rush hour traffic to an appointment to get our fingerprints taken for our adoption. Without traffic, this drive would have taken approximately 50 minutes but since we were supposed to be there at 8:00am, we anticipated the drive to be about 1 hour and 20 minutes, which it was but as we were sitting in traffic, we were certain that we were going to be late. We ended up getting to the facility about 8 minutes early only to discover that we needed $7 cash to park. Unfortunately neither of us had any cash, nor was there anywhere else obvious to park. My thought was that we should look for somewhere to get cash, her thought was that we should look for somewhere else to park. The problem was that neither of us really communicated what we were thinking yet we were each trying to solve the problem. As you can imagine, this led to some frustration and bickering (as well as a half mile jog/walk once we finally parked).

I don't really have any profound point to make other than the obvious comment that communication is important in pretty much anything we do. So with that amazing nugget, I encourage you to follow the advice of Jesus' brother James who said in James 1:19 "...Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry..." Being quick to offer grace and forgiveness is probably a good idea in these situations as well.

My wife and I quickly got over the situation but it is quite safe to say that we won't be competing on "The Amazing Race" together, though we probably would be entertaining to watch.

Life Lessons From a Sandwich Shop II: When is More Enough?

Awhile ago I did a blog post on a sign that I saw at Jimmy Johns (Jimmy Johns is a really good sandwich shop) and when I was there again recently, I saw the sign above and thought that it warranted a post. So, it looks like we have a series now; Lessons From a Sandwich Shop. Here is part 2.

It is human nature to want more than we have or at least different than we have. In America, that mindset really fuels the economy. Madison Avenue works diligently to convince us that what we have is not enough, that we must have the next, the bigger, the better. I am no different than most people. I have an iPod Touch and an iPhone, yet, I would really like an iPad2. I have a 42" HDTV but a bigger TV would be really cool. The possibilities for how this plays out are pretty much endless and unfortunately for many people includes spouses/families, don't like the one you've got, just get a new one.

That's where the wisdom of a sign at a sandwich shop comes in. When do we stop wanting more? When is the more that we already have enough? As the sign in the picture says; "the gap...never closes." If our focus is on stuff or money, we will never be satisfied because we can always have more than what we currently have.

Matthew 6:19-21 says this "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."

Store up things that matter, "treasures in heaven", and stop buying in to the lies that Madison Avenue tells us. Let God be enough and instead of striving for latest and greatest maybe you can help the millions for people around the world who don't even have food or water.

Isn't it amazing what you can get with a sandwich?