The words “can be easily assembled using hand tools” has brought terror
into many a father’s life. I know it has me, as sometimes even following the
directions, I end up with something that doesn’t look like the picture on the
box. And I usually end up with a handful of unused nuts and bolts....sound
familiar? I used to feel intimidated by the trendy types on HGTV who can turn a
pile of wood chips into a dresser, my skills supply them with the wood chips.
And over the years there have been various injuries, none life but only ego
threatening when I was forced to fix something. It seems somewhere between my
brain and hands the message gets lost, and my hands never get. Assuming my brain
ever did. And yesterday I was reminded by a friend when he told me how his bike
ran fine, until he worked on it. And he is a trained mechanic, but known for
overlooking the obvious. Ever go to adjust the chon, and end up with it looser?
NO, turn it the other left. Or lubricate the floor under your car when you
forgot to replace the drain plug after draining the oil. Leaving you no way to
get to the store to buy more, or rags to clean it up. One day I offered to lube
a friend’s clutch cable, and ended up with STP everywhere but in the cable, that
stuff really is slick. “Have you checked the timing?” has resulted in trips to
the dealer with the bike in the back of a truck. Have you ever tightened a bolt
just one more turn, turning the bolt into a stud when the head breaks off in
your socket, ruing both a good bolt and a $1.50 socket? Have you ever panicked
when smoke started coming from your battery after hooking up the cables
backwards? And finally when all else fails, read the owners manual, or take it
to the shop where it should have gone in the first place. Where the joke is
“here comes Mike, I guess he worked on his (fill in the blank) again.” Stupid
hurts, remember that next time the door won’t pull open while staring at the
push sign. Just pull the other way. Turn to the other right. Twist the other
clockwise.....and hide all hand tools from me!
At Mercedes Benz I had an old tech who was experienced, but gruff. Great at
fixing things as long as the human contact wasn’t involved. One day a woman came
in complaining that her AC didn’t blow. He reached under the hood, replaced a
fuse, and sudden AC. “How much?” she asked. $20,” he replied. “Just for
replacing a fuse,” she argued. But his answer was priceless, “but I knew which
one.” Maybe you can’t teach experience, but you can sure pay attention and
benefit from others. I actually sat in a doctor’s office once, a friend
complaining that when he raised his hands, his shoulders hurt. The advice,
“don’t do it.” He also told me once all my problems were from the shoulders up,
still not sure what that meant. And so many doctors, mechanics, parts stores,
and those who fix things are doing quite well, or able to retire early due to me
trying to fix things. Maybe the only smart guy here was Tim the Toolman Taylor
who made a career out of stupid. And laughed all the way to the bank. Someone we
could associate with, and laugh with, rather than having someone laugh at us, or
laughing at ourselves. Nothing impresses more than stupid...except for maybe the
excuses made afterwards.
God has given us a simple hand tool, it is called the Bible. After teaching
the other night, a woman asked if I had any literature about our church. I got a
strange look when I told her the Bible. Your church is about it, right? But form
time to time I get invited to Bible studies where they are studying the newest
book of how to get closer to God. The latest offering a man told me about was
how to pray. A Christian for 15 years, he still didn’t get it that prayer is a
conversation with God? He was looking for the secret to Jesus, yet it is no
secret, and is found in the Bible. Which only works if read, which means you
have to open it. Using no hand tools, only your hands. One man offered
memorizing the Bible using a best seller, not the best seller. Which he was
trying to memorize. Some attend self help classes, or read positive mental
attitude books. The glass isn’t half empty, it’s half full, they are the
opposite of half slow half fast. So many seek and never find when the truth is
there the whole time. Right in front of us, but somehow escapes us. I refer to
Psalm 1,
1 Blessed is the one
who does not walk in step with the wicked
or stand in the way that sinners take
or sit in the company of mockers,
2 but whose delight is in the law of the Lord,
and who meditates on his law day and night.
3 That person is like a tree planted by streams of water,
which yields its fruit in season
and whose leaf does not wither—
whatever they do prospers.
4 Not so the wicked!
They are like chaff
that the wind blows away.
5 Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment,
nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous.
6 For the Lord watches over the way of the righteous,
but the way of the wicked leads to destruction.
In today’s words, hang out with Jesus. Don’t listen to others advice, seek
his. No extra books needed, read your Bible, pray and watch as the spirit leads
you. Quote me on that, but quote Jesus on everything else. Not me. Meditate,
think about him, read about him, pray with him. Don’t ask for opinions, deal
with the truth, the person of Jesus Christ. Why read anything else but a best
seller? Hey, even the pictures are good.
Lives need fixing, so be like the Psalm says. We have a sticker on our
truck that says, “for some there is therapy, for he rest of us there are
motorcycles.” Works in life too, some study, some seek, but the truth is only
found in Jesus. Your life will only run better if you let Jesus fix it. No left
over parts, no missed rides. No extra bills. Delight in Jesus, hi slaw is love,
his yoke is easy, and his promises yea and amen. Lifetime warranty. And he fixes
broken parts, replaces them with factory originals-he is the factory. So be like
my old tech, when asked about books to read, how to get closer to God, point him
to Jesus. I know which one. Now if I can only find where I my funnel is, I need
to top off the oil, just a little....and I hope it runs after I work on
it.
love with compassion,
Mike
matthew25biker.blogspot.com