When you think about “great inventions”, which ones come to your mind? I would imagine the airplane, the telephone, maybe the cell phone (glad they are smaller now, carrying a suitcase for the early cell was tough), or maybe the blazing fast computers we have today. When we think of “great inventions”, we often think of the big ones, but have you ever thought about the not-so-big inventions? The ones that go unnoticed?
The other day I was thinking about the invention of the “sticky note”. Can you see some person sitting around thinking about how to leave a note for someone, and they come up with this little yellow piece of paper that has a sticky strip? Take it even further---this person can see how it can be bright colors and different sizes---how smart is that? Personally, I love the sticky note. In our home I leave the occasional sticky note for my wife. I will place it on the coffee pot to tell her how much I love her, and that the coffee is fresh. The “sticky note” can be used to leave little notes to people that matter to you, and its sort of fun. If it was not for the invention of the sticky note, we might still be using smoke signals.
Have you ever thought about how God leaves sticky notes for us? We are heading into the spring season and we can start to see color again - God’s sticky reminding us of his creativity. We hear the singing of the birds and we can tell that He is creating a new song. While I write this we are only a few weeks away from Easter, and I cannot help but think that the cross is the biggest “sticky” of them all. It shows us His love, and the note reads, “I love you so much I am willing to let my son die for you”. I wonder if we can truly grasp the depth of this sticky note?
Next time you use a “sticky note”, remember that God is strategically placing a “sticky” in your life, either to get your attention or to remind you of His love.
RB
Thursday, March 25, 2010
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
Big Yellow Bus
I am not sure about you, but I really struggle when it comes to doing things with excellence. I would far rather put as little effort as possible into things hoping for a great outcome.
A few years ago my office was across the road from a school bus depot. From my window, I could see the buses leave in the morning and then come back a few hours later. Once the dirty buses arrived back to the lot, this employee would then go get the buses one by one and he would wash them. Now, keep in mind, a bus is not the size of a small compact car… these were your full-length yellow school buses. One by one he would spray them down, soap them up, then rinse them off. To be honest, I thought it was an effort that could have been done maybe once a week. Part of me thought, “the bus is going to get dirty again in a few hours, who cares?” I liken it to making the bed everyday; you are just going to get back into it that night, why make it? Who’s with me?
This employee left an impact on me, and I still think about it to this day. He washed those “Big Yellow Buses” every single day, and he seemed to do it with excellence every time. All day, five days a week he brought those buses back to shine.
You and I are probably not washing buses (or, if you are, good for you), but we are doing other things. We are working the assembly line, putting numbers into spreadsheets, raising children, doing homework. You can fill in the blank, but I ask, are you doing your thing with excellence each day? If you are a follower of Jesus, He asks us to live this way. He truly wants us to give our best in all that we do.
Next time you are tempted to put a half-effort into something, think about the “Big Yellow Bus”.
RB1 Corinthians 10:31
A few years ago my office was across the road from a school bus depot. From my window, I could see the buses leave in the morning and then come back a few hours later. Once the dirty buses arrived back to the lot, this employee would then go get the buses one by one and he would wash them. Now, keep in mind, a bus is not the size of a small compact car… these were your full-length yellow school buses. One by one he would spray them down, soap them up, then rinse them off. To be honest, I thought it was an effort that could have been done maybe once a week. Part of me thought, “the bus is going to get dirty again in a few hours, who cares?” I liken it to making the bed everyday; you are just going to get back into it that night, why make it? Who’s with me?
This employee left an impact on me, and I still think about it to this day. He washed those “Big Yellow Buses” every single day, and he seemed to do it with excellence every time. All day, five days a week he brought those buses back to shine.
You and I are probably not washing buses (or, if you are, good for you), but we are doing other things. We are working the assembly line, putting numbers into spreadsheets, raising children, doing homework. You can fill in the blank, but I ask, are you doing your thing with excellence each day? If you are a follower of Jesus, He asks us to live this way. He truly wants us to give our best in all that we do.
Next time you are tempted to put a half-effort into something, think about the “Big Yellow Bus”.
RB1 Corinthians 10:31
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