Character

Being in downtown Toronto I don't have to use my car much throughout each month. In fact this past month I only went through 1 1/3 tanks of gas in total, but that's besides the point. I have noticed something because I haven't been driving as much:

#1 - I am less stressed

#2 - I am more aware of the way others drive and my attitude while driving

For the longest time I have always wondered why people drive the way they do and react in the car the way they do. Why do people scream at another person when they know the person can't hear them? Why do people speed right up to the bumper of the person in front just to not let a person merge into the lane? Why do people speed? Or why do people go the exact amount over the speed limit, so they don't get caught, but still speed?

Maybe I am making this too simple, but I think the answer to these questions is character. I believe the character of a person is shown when either no one is looking, or when a person is doing things we don't have to think about doing.

One specific story demonstrates this perfectly:

I was walking to work on Friday of this week (yes I have the privilege of living in the community of which I am a pastor. It is absolutely wonderful and I deem necessary to have an impact). I was almost at my church when I heard this car engine revving quite high and then screech to a hault. The driver then took off, squealing his tires and going VERY fast down a residential street. As he was passing by I motioned to him to slow down as there are kids all around. He promptly gave me the finger, the middle one, not so nice.

Character is such a hard thing to comprehend, but it means a person is upright in standing, does not have double standards, is the same person when they are in private and public settings, and follows Christ above all, as well as many other things.

My driving changed a couple of years ago now. I thought I was invincible and couldn't get caught with anything. I would go between 130-140km/h on the highways and drive fairly wrecklessly in the city. My beautiful wife tried to talk with me about it, but I wouldn't listen, so she did what she knows how to do best, she prayed. Literally a month later I was pulled over for doing a rolling stop. 3 demerit points and a $120 ticket later I realized where my character was at. How can, I as a leader and person, tell others to obey Christ when I can't even obey the laws in which God has set in place through the authority he has set in place. My life has changed since. Megan loves driving with me now because I am not reckless and am more at peace because I have nothing to fear being caught for.

I say all this to get us all to think about not our driving, but our character. What is it we say when driving? Do we curse another person? Aren't we supposed to bless others? Do we blame a person's driving on their race? Isn't that just racism, or showing prejudice? Do we speed thinking we will never get caught? Aren't we supposed to obey all authority unless it goes against the law of God?

Driving can really show us how our hearts are and whether we are truly who we say we are.

Think about it and let me know what you think. I would love to hear all of your thoughts.

That's it!

Joy of Simplicity

Let me set the scene: I was walking home from work just a couple days ago and I noticed this young girl riding her bike.  Her dad was not far behind and it seemed like the bike was brand new and being taken for a test drive.  I couldn't help but notice this HUGE smile on this young girl's face; she was beaming.  A new bike, taking it for a ride, dad not far behind to make sure all is good, could it get any better?

This little girl's smile made me think of how many times I simply smile throughout each day; not because I am happy, but because of something deeper inside me.  I have to admit, it is not as much as I would like it to be.  Usually my concern for other things takes over my consciousness and I don't have the capacity to think about joy, or anything that brings me joy.  Seeing the smile on this little girl's face struck me as something very real.

There is another example of this joy: Everybody Loves Raymond - Season 1.  Ally is sitting at the dining room table staring off into space just smiling.  Ray and Deborah chat for a bit trying to figure out how she can be so happy and full of joy.  It comes to Ray asking his daughter, "What are you thinking about?" she replies, "Candy".  CANDY!  There is something so simple yet beautiful about this.

I have found as each year passes my life tends to become just a little more complicated.  Maybe it is a new profile at work, or having to look after more things because of buying a house; buying an extra car, or having a child.  Whatever it may be if I/we don't think about what we are doing life just gets more complicated whether we like it or not.  Isn't there something wrong with that?  Don't we remember the joy we had when we were a kid?  The ability to allow the simplest of things to satisfy us?

Just one more example of joy: My mom has this Tupperware drawer in her house.  Whenever any child comes over there are toys, games, books, puzzles, and many more things that either the parents brought or my mom has in the house, BUT at the end of the visit, no matter who the child is, my mom opens that secret drawer and the child has the greatest time of life, not with toys, WITH TUPPERWARE.

I find, not only do we complicate our lives year after year, but as we complicate our lives we lose the joy of simplicity.  More often than not I find the people who have less, or choose to have less find much more joy in life than people who have lots of, well, stuff.

Ever catch yourself saying, "ah, life was just simpler back then".  I'm only 27 and I say this!  Well the reality is if we are saying this, over the course of the last number of years we have chosen to complicate our lives instead of to keep them simple.  If our lives are not simple, we have chosen to complicate it.  Yes, it is indeed that simple.

So, let me as this question: do you have joy in your life?  I know I have some joy, but seeing this little girl ride her bike with the biggest smile on her face brought something I haven't seen in a while.  Where are our child like lives gone?  Do we think it is immature to be a child?  Why does Jesus tell us that unless we become like a child we will never enter the Kingdom (Matthew 18:3)?  I think it's because when we are children things are so simple, not complicated; we accept and experience the joy of simplicity.

Think about it, do you experience joy in your life?  I was reminded of how much more joy I can experience in my life by just living life simply: riding a bike, or just simply thinking about candy.

Go ride a bike.
Day dream about candy.

DO IT! Find the joy of simplicity.