musical influence

I wonder why music has such an influence over us. I am not musically inclined at all, so I can't explain its influence, but I do know what I like and don't like. What I have noticed is different kinds of music put me in different moods and maybe it is the mood I don't like. It could also be that I don't understand certain kinds of music and therefore don't like them. Generally I like upbeat melodies with words and meanings I can understand.

What brought this to mind, is yesterday (Sunday) we sang this song that always puts me in a downer. The words are okay but the melody is a total loser from my point of view, but obviously not from the song leader's perspective. I want our songs to create a different mood than some of our song leaders. I try to bite my tongue most of the time in respect for others opinions which are just as valid as mine.

That is enough ranting and raving for awhile. For those who made it to this point, you are very patient, thank you.

reshaping a life

I have an old trailer, that I am fixing up so it can be used again. It has been sitting in the back yard unused for several years now, mainly due to a bent tongue. The bend is not real bad just enough so it doesn't follow well. Once again I went to my farmer friend, as he has just about everything. I asked him if the we could straighten the tongue on my trailer. He wasn't sure as it was a channel piece, but he would try. He started with the simplest method, beating on it with a sledge hammer, but after several hits we knew it would take more force than we could supply with just a hammer. We took it to his press (good farmers have everything) and it helped it some but not enough. Since the piece was channel shaped bending on one side too much caused the other side to bend in a way we didn't want. His son suggested we put a straight piece inside the channel and use that to help shape it. Great idea! He found a scrap of iron just the right size to fit into the channel and keep it from collapsing (farmers keep everything, who knows when you might need it, they also have the room). The result, I now have a trailer I can pull when I get a trailer hitch. A disclaimer all these "we's" should be him. I merely watched and gave moral support. What do we do when our lives get bent out of shape? Just like that trailer with a bent tongue, we don't go in the direction we should if our lives are bent by sin. Our lives need to be reshaped to their original form, and the only form that works is Jesus. He is the one we need to wrapped around and be pressed against to conform to the proper shape. It took some force to straighten that metal tongue and it won't be easy to reshape us either, but it can be done. The strength to straighten the trailer was more than we had, but with the press it was possible. Likewise it will take the power of God to straighten us out. The good news is that He loves us enough to do whatever it takes. Thanks God

It isn't always what it seems

Last week was a little anxious, as one of our cars quit running. Car repair can be simple or complicated, but almost always expensive. The symptoms pointed to a failed battery (simple), so I took the battery down to be tested and sure enough it was bad. I brought a new battery (somewhat expensive) and installed it. But then the same symptoms returned, the car wouldn't start without jumping the battery. Well, it has a new battery I thought, so it must be the alternator (not too complicated). I have a friend who is a farmer, farmers are great because they have tools and equipment for almost any situation or they can at least work around the problem. I asked him to bring in his battery tester which also checks alternators to make sure it was the alternator. We discovered that the alternator was good but the new battery checked out weak, probably one of the cells was bad. I took the battery back and got a new one (simple) and since I had only had the other "new" one about a week there was no cost (inexpensive), just the hassle of switching batteries several times.

I just assumed that the first new battery was good. The guys at the auto parts store didn't intentionally sell me a defective battery, they just hadn't checked it. It wasn't until I put a tester on the new battery that I found it was the problem. Ever been taught something from the Bible that turned out not to be true or at least not as presented? I have and I have also been guilty of doing the same. The teaching came from a reliable source and they weren't intentionally trying to deceive me, because they too believed it to be true. But when questions arose that my beliefs couldn't answer I began to reevaluate my beliefs and to study until I found some answers.

The moral of this story, if it actually has one, is to ask questions and apply the answers to the tester, Jesus, and not just accept what is taught. Easier said than done though, but with the Spirit's help and a believing heart it is possible.