Sunday, December 30, 2012

Proverbs XIV

Truth is not decided by the number of people subscribing to it. Whether or not certain ideas are “out of the mainstream” is besides the point. A correct conclusion is also not necessarily reached by embracing some middle ground between two opposing viewpoints either. Assuming one view point was correct, the compromised conclusion is not.

Wednesday, December 26, 2012

Christmas


Isaiah (700 BC) and Paul (65 AD) talk about the significance of Jesus.

The people walking in darkness
    have seen a great light;
on those living in the land of deep darkness
    a light has dawned.
You have enlarged the nation
    and increased their joy;
they rejoice before you
    as people rejoice at the harvest,
as warriors rejoice
    when dividing the plunder.
For as in the day of Midian’s defeat,
    you have shattered
the yoke that burdens them,
    the bar across their shoulders,
    the rod of their oppressor.
Every warrior’s boot used in battle
    and every garment rolled in blood
will be destined for burning,
    will be fuel for the fire.
For to us a child is born,
    to us a son is given,
    and the government will be on his shoulders.
And he will be called
    Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
    Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Of the greatness of his government and peace
    there will be no end.
He will reign on David’s throne
    and over his kingdom,
establishing and upholding it
    with justice and righteousness
    from that time on and forever.
The zeal of the Lord Almighty
    will accomplish this.


For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross. Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior. But now he has reconciled you by Christ’s physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation.

Friday, December 21, 2012

The Longest Night

Dear Diary,

Today is my favourite day of the year. Winter Solstice. I'm sure that doesn't make sense to most people but for me it marks a turning point every year. Today is the day with the least amount of light all year, which also makes it the day with the longest night too. From this point on, for the next 6 months or so, every day will get a little longer. Every night will get a little shorter. And that's why it's my favourite day of the year.

Not much has been going on in my life lately, a few Christmas parties, confirmation from work that I'm getting a new position with a much better schedule, and a few new video games.

I've had a few tiny blessings and opportunities come along. I've rewired an oven and did some minor plumbing and all without destroying anything. I'm rather proud of myself. I received a large gift of very expensive chocolates from some of my clients. It made my day. Usually it's the business owner giving gifts to the clients to keep them loyal (an altruistic "gift" of self promotion).  However this honestly made my day, for my clients to tell me I've treated them so well they wanted to return the favour. I finished all my shopping a week ago. I have no need to step inside a store for anything until next year. Thank goodness. The stores are crazy.

Sometime between now and Christmas I plan on watching one of my favourite Christmas movies, A Muppet Christmas Carol. It's funny and heart warming and, although I'm not a huge fan of musicals, the songs are amazing and get stuck in your head for days afterward. And maybe I'll watch my second favourite Christmas movie too. Die Hard.

Later



Saturday, December 15, 2012

Proverbs XIII

I'm not usually a poster of quotes but this one resonated with me.

“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again; because there is not effort without error and shortcomings; but who does actually strive to do the deed; who knows the great enthusiasm, the great devotion, who spends himself in a worthy cause, who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement and who at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly. So that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat.
- Theodore Roosevelt

There's nothing sadder than a life not lived.

Thursday, December 13, 2012

Ugly Babies

Disclaimer: I'm not talking about any babies in particular.

So, what do you do if someone has an ugly baby? Do you tell that person? Do you ignore the obvious? What if they ask you how cute little "Junior" or "Princess" is? Change the subject? It's a very difficult situation. Maybe you just ignore the question and hope it doesn't come up again. What if they don't ask you? Do you offer them the unsolicited truth that their baby is ugly? Maybe what they're saying isn't really what they're asking and so your reply could be an answer to what they really mean, not the actual words they said. Maybe when they asked you if you thought little "Precious" was cute what they really meant was do you think I'll be a good parent? You could honestly reply in the affirmative without hurting anyone's feelings, and you would have answered the question they were really asking in the first place. Unless of course they meant what they said and now you're a liar. Or you could do the obsfucation method and reply in a way that makes the asker think you've answered the question while really avoiding the question all together. "You must think you have the most beautiful baby in the world," you reply. Now everyone is happy but the truth remains hidden.

This entry is not really about ugly babies but unsolicited (and sometimes unwanted) truth. In Ephesians 4:15 Paul off-handedly refers to speaking the truth in love. I think it is a valuable lesson. Sometimes the truth is unsolicited and can be hurtful if it isn't shared in a caring way. Sometimes it is hurtful even when it is shared in a caring way. Does that mean it's best not to share the truth, sugar coat the truth, twist the truth, or just "Give 'em what they want," even if it's a lie? Maybe you could obsfucate and leave everyone happy but ignorant?

It's the Ugly Baby Dilemma. I think I just coined that phrase.

I'll stop going down this thought tunnel right now but it is something I've been thinking about for a while. There's a lot of unsolicited thoughts in my head that I think are probably true, but not necessarily popular.

I came across a saying a long time ago. All truth belongs to God. I am not 100% sure who said it but I like it. I'm not afraid to search for any truth because whatever is true is simply a fact about creation which was created by our Creator.

Every once in a while I think a series of blog posts will go in one direction or another. Sometimes they do, sometimes they don't. I'm not sure what the next series of posts will be about, but I do think it will be interesting.


Monday, December 10, 2012

Proverbs XII


If good things come to those who wait,
procrastination is a virtue.

Thursday, December 6, 2012

I'm Awesome

Number 1

I am confident.

That was not always the case. I was a very timid kid growing up. I did not want to venture out of my comfort zone or take any risks. Somewhere between then and now things changed. I think graduating and going to bible college was the catalyst. Either way, my confidence in myself has allowed me to do a lot of things most people would not even consider, or consider stupid.

I ran for city council when I was 22 years old. I didn't win but I believe I had a legitimate shot. I went door to door campaigning, had signs up on people's lawns, did interviews with the city newspaper, had volunteers deliver fliers and received cash donations. Although I didn't win I still received more votes than two other individuals I was running against. Fresh Perspective, New Ideas. That was my slogan. I still have a few signs as souvenirs.

I became a logistics co-ordinator for the Canadian Special Olympics when I was 23. My brother and I decided to volunteer and somehow we got the keys to the warehouse, access to vehicles, and off we went. I never had that little nagging voice inside my head telling me I was too young or inexperienced to take on this role. I dived right in and did it, and everything ran smoothly. I never once thought that I couldn't do it.

I started my first business when I was 25. I was still in university at the time. I had 7 employees. I was responsible for payroll, scheduling, advertising, hiring and firing. Ultimately I disbanned it, although it did pay the bills while it was in operation, it was never really a success. I trained a select few of my employees how to run a similar business and they started their own once I shut down. It taught me a lot of great things about advertising, working with the public and profitability. It also taught me to love what you do, or don't do it. I really liked the business aspect of the company but didn't like the service we provided. My heart wasn't in it. I took what I learned and transposed it into the side venture I have running now. My overhead is low, cash flow is up and I really like what I do which doesn't make it seem like work at all. Not just anyone would take a chance and put everything on the line to do what I do now. I was confident that I could take even my unsuccessful ventures and parlay them into a successful business because I was confident in my ability to succeed.

I committed myself to run a marathon at age 27 without any prior experience in endurance sports. Up to that point I had never had any experience in long distance running. I even had a breathing condition that manifested itself in a way similar to asthma but I was confident I could overcome any obstacle in my way. Three months later, I ran two marathons a week apart.

I am a pilot. There is a certain type of personality that finds it's way into aviation. Although many different people are pilots, it is a profession requiring mental fortitude and only those who are confident in themselves stick it out beyond the first few years. Every day I am responsible for my own life and the lives of my passengers as I travel half the speed of sound, 25 000 feet above the earth. I have to be confident in my abilities or I could not do this. I left half way through a university degree to pursue a career as a pilot. I never looked back. I knew it was what I wanted to do, and I did it. I had no doubt that I could be successful in this profession. I achieved a childhood dream most people would consider out of reach. And I reached it.

I am confident.