A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, he wordlessly picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls. He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.
The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls. He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was.
The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else. He asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with an unanimous "yes."
The professor then produced two cups of coffee from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar effectively filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed.
"Now," said the professor as the laughter subsided, "I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The golf balls are the important things--your family, your children, your health, your friends and your favorite passions--and if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full.
The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, your house and your car.
The sand is everything else--the small stuff. "If you put the sand into the jar first," he continued, "there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff you will never have room for the things that are important to you.
"Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. Play with your children. Take time to get medical checkups. Take your spouse out to dinner. Play another 18. There will always be time to clean the house and fix the disposal. Take care of the golf balls first--the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand."
One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the coffee represented. The professor smiled. "I'm glad you asked.
It just goes to show you that no matter how full your life may seem, there's always room for a couple of cups of coffee with a friend."
Thursday 28 October 2010
Friday 15 October 2010
The refiner's fire
Malachi 3:3 says: "He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver."
The story is told about some women in a Bible study who were puzzled by this verse.
They wondered what this statement meant about the character and nature of God.
One of the women offered to find out the process of refining silver and get back to the group at their next Bible Study.
That week, the woman called a silversmith and made an appointment to watch him at work. She didn't mention anything about the reason for her interest beyond her curiosity about the process of refining silver.
As she watched the silversmith, he held a piece of silver over the fire and let it heat up. He explained that in refining silver, one needed to hold the silver in the middle of the fire where the flames were hottest as to burn away all the impurities.
The woman thought about God allowing us to be in fires of life, then she thought again about the verse that says: "He sits as a refiner and purifier of silver." She asked the silversmith if it was true that he had to sit there in front of the fire the whole time the silver was being refined. The man answered that yes, he not only had to sit there holding the silver, but he had to keep his eyes on the silver the entire time it was in the fire. If the silver was left a moment too long in the flames, it would be destroyed.
The woman was silent for a moment. Then she asked the silversmith, "How do you know when the silver is fully refined?" He smiled at her and answered, "Oh, that's easy -- when I see my reflection in it."
Whatever fires we may be going through today, if we ask God he will always hold us close, not promising to take us out of the fire but to walk with us through the trials. And as we take each step forward we move closer to god being able to see his image someday in our lives.
Have a great day
God bless
Chris
The story is told about some women in a Bible study who were puzzled by this verse.
They wondered what this statement meant about the character and nature of God.
One of the women offered to find out the process of refining silver and get back to the group at their next Bible Study.
That week, the woman called a silversmith and made an appointment to watch him at work. She didn't mention anything about the reason for her interest beyond her curiosity about the process of refining silver.
As she watched the silversmith, he held a piece of silver over the fire and let it heat up. He explained that in refining silver, one needed to hold the silver in the middle of the fire where the flames were hottest as to burn away all the impurities.
The woman thought about God allowing us to be in fires of life, then she thought again about the verse that says: "He sits as a refiner and purifier of silver." She asked the silversmith if it was true that he had to sit there in front of the fire the whole time the silver was being refined. The man answered that yes, he not only had to sit there holding the silver, but he had to keep his eyes on the silver the entire time it was in the fire. If the silver was left a moment too long in the flames, it would be destroyed.
The woman was silent for a moment. Then she asked the silversmith, "How do you know when the silver is fully refined?" He smiled at her and answered, "Oh, that's easy -- when I see my reflection in it."
Whatever fires we may be going through today, if we ask God he will always hold us close, not promising to take us out of the fire but to walk with us through the trials. And as we take each step forward we move closer to god being able to see his image someday in our lives.
Have a great day
God bless
Chris
Sunday 3 October 2010
Any one for a crisp?
This week at our church we are thinking about the subject of giving; primarily how and why we should give to God.
He very generously gives us so much and provides for us in many different ways from the homes we live in, to the food we eat, our families, friends, health and happiness. We have much to be greatful for and can give so little in return so really why bother, what is the point in trying? And if we think about the things we can give to God; our talents, our money or our time are any of these things what God really needs?
God doesn't need our money as the bible tells us he owns the cattle on a thousand hills so why should we make the effort to put our hard earned into the basket on a Sunday?
In thinking about this I was reminded of a story that a member of our house group told a few weeks ago that I would like to share: My friend James has a small son who is only about two years old (I don't really know old he is, I am not good at kids ages) who loves Hula Hoops. And when James gives his son a bag of Hula Hoops he goes off to play and eat and sometimes brings back one crisp to give to his daddy. James explained to me that this one crisp, even though he has plenty of bags of crisps in his kitchen, tastes so much better as it has been given to him by his son.
And that is the whole point of and the reason why we should give a portion of what God has given to us back to him. Because that one Hula Hoop given back to our 'abba father' daddy can mean so much more if it is given in love.
Think today about what we can give to God and how we can give thanks to him for all the many gifts that he has already freely given to bless us.
Have a great day.
God Bless.
Chris
He very generously gives us so much and provides for us in many different ways from the homes we live in, to the food we eat, our families, friends, health and happiness. We have much to be greatful for and can give so little in return so really why bother, what is the point in trying? And if we think about the things we can give to God; our talents, our money or our time are any of these things what God really needs?
God doesn't need our money as the bible tells us he owns the cattle on a thousand hills so why should we make the effort to put our hard earned into the basket on a Sunday?
In thinking about this I was reminded of a story that a member of our house group told a few weeks ago that I would like to share: My friend James has a small son who is only about two years old (I don't really know old he is, I am not good at kids ages) who loves Hula Hoops. And when James gives his son a bag of Hula Hoops he goes off to play and eat and sometimes brings back one crisp to give to his daddy. James explained to me that this one crisp, even though he has plenty of bags of crisps in his kitchen, tastes so much better as it has been given to him by his son.
And that is the whole point of and the reason why we should give a portion of what God has given to us back to him. Because that one Hula Hoop given back to our 'abba father' daddy can mean so much more if it is given in love.
Think today about what we can give to God and how we can give thanks to him for all the many gifts that he has already freely given to bless us.
Have a great day.
God Bless.
Chris
Friday 1 October 2010
The happiest place on earth
The 1st of October is a special day for Disney fans worldwide as it marks the day in 1971 that Walt Disney World opened it's doors to the public in Orlando for the first time. After seven years of planning and secretly purchasing land then going through trials and even Walt's death the park finally opened. About 10,000 people entered the doors of the Magic Kingdom that morning, then the only Disney park in Orlando, paying the admission fee of $4.95.
Debbie and I have been fortunate enough to visit Orlando not long after we got married and again with family a few years ago. The first trip was because Debbie had visited when she was 15 and was trying to convince me that I would enjoy the experience. And I was more than a little skeptical, "surely Disney is just a place for kids" I argued but couldn't have been more wrong. The first time that we stepped through the gates and got the view of the castle I was hooked and have at times become slightly obsessed with the parks ever since.
Having now traveled to Orlando twice and to Disneyland Paris three times it's not the rides or the shows or the characters that keep on drawing us back or even the details and the atmosphere. The smell of pop-corn as you walk down Main Street, the subtle changes in architecture and music as you move into a new land and the feel of each area all help us "get into" the Disney spirit. The small things are what make so much difference; the themeing of the queue areas that do so much more than just serve a purpose of getting on a ride but imerse you in the back story of an attraction are all excellent.
But it's more than that; when Walt was designing the original Disneyland he said it was to become a place where parents and children could have fun together. And in all his films, cartoons and parks he never lost sight of the truth that for success the family has to come first. Many things have changed over the years in the Disney parks not least the $4.95 admission which is now slightly more. But the sense of putting the family first has never changed and this is the spirit in which I blog today that in all else that happens in life we should never fail to put family first.
Jobs will come and go, money comes in and out, prices rise and fall, governments, trends, fashions, fads and styles are always changing. Culture evolves, beliefs are effected, churches adapt in shape and size and even friends may not be as constant as they should be. But our families should always come first!
Please take the time to put your family first today, take the extra time to make that phone call to say thank you, the extra effort to visit loved ones and grab any opportunity for a hug, a word of encouragement or just to say to someone "You come first in my priorities".
Have a great day.
God Bless.
Chris
Debbie and I have been fortunate enough to visit Orlando not long after we got married and again with family a few years ago. The first trip was because Debbie had visited when she was 15 and was trying to convince me that I would enjoy the experience. And I was more than a little skeptical, "surely Disney is just a place for kids" I argued but couldn't have been more wrong. The first time that we stepped through the gates and got the view of the castle I was hooked and have at times become slightly obsessed with the parks ever since.
Having now traveled to Orlando twice and to Disneyland Paris three times it's not the rides or the shows or the characters that keep on drawing us back or even the details and the atmosphere. The smell of pop-corn as you walk down Main Street, the subtle changes in architecture and music as you move into a new land and the feel of each area all help us "get into" the Disney spirit. The small things are what make so much difference; the themeing of the queue areas that do so much more than just serve a purpose of getting on a ride but imerse you in the back story of an attraction are all excellent.
But it's more than that; when Walt was designing the original Disneyland he said it was to become a place where parents and children could have fun together. And in all his films, cartoons and parks he never lost sight of the truth that for success the family has to come first. Many things have changed over the years in the Disney parks not least the $4.95 admission which is now slightly more. But the sense of putting the family first has never changed and this is the spirit in which I blog today that in all else that happens in life we should never fail to put family first.
Jobs will come and go, money comes in and out, prices rise and fall, governments, trends, fashions, fads and styles are always changing. Culture evolves, beliefs are effected, churches adapt in shape and size and even friends may not be as constant as they should be. But our families should always come first!
Please take the time to put your family first today, take the extra time to make that phone call to say thank you, the extra effort to visit loved ones and grab any opportunity for a hug, a word of encouragement or just to say to someone "You come first in my priorities".
Have a great day.
God Bless.
Chris
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