Dumb and Dumber

For some time I have been amused by a campaign by the Denver Water Board to encourage conservation of water.

Back when we were in a drought, there were restrictions on when and how long you could water the grass, plants, etc. The people of Denver responded, water usage was less and the reward was higher water rates. We cut back and then Denver Water decided they would raise the rates to compensate for less revenue. Thanks a lot!

The campaign I referred to is called Use Only What You Need. As you can see from the pictures, the clever idea is to use only part of a billboard, bus bench or bus ad. The message is that all of the space isn’t necessary to get their message across.

Here is what is dumb about the whole campaign. Do you think because they only used a portion of the available space that they only had to pay for part of the media used? Of course not. You pay for the whole thing even if you only use part.

Now we see that the same principle applied to rewarding conservation with a raise in rates.

Use only what you need but pay as if you used it all.

Philip

Save Tomorrow for Tomorrow

Let us then think only of the present, and not even permit our minds to wander with curiosity into the future. This future is not yet ours; perhaps it never will be. It is exposing ourselves to temptation to wish to anticipate God, and to prepare ourselves for things which He may not destine for us. If such things should come to pass, He will give us light and strength according to the need. Why should we desire to meet difficulties prematurely, when we have neither strength nor light as yet provided for them? Let us give heed to the present, whose duties are pressing; it is fidelity to the present which prepares us for fidelity in the future.
Francois Fenelon

So what do you think is proper looking to the future? In Proverbs, it speaks of storing up in the summer for the winter. Is that planning wise because it is a known cycle?

Is the wrong thing when you worry or spend energy on things that may never happen?

What do you think?

Philip

A Drug Problem

The other day, someone at a store in our town read that a methamphetamine lab had been found in an old farmhouse in the adjoining county and he asked me a rhetorical question, ''Why didn't we have a drug problem when you and I were growing up?''

I replied: I had a drug problem when I was young:

I was drug to church on Sunday morning.

I was drug to church for weddings and funerals.

I was drug to family reunions and community socials no matter the weather. I was drug by my ears when I was disrespectful to adults.

I was also drug to the woodshed when I disobeyed my parents, told a lie, brought home a bad report card, did not speak with respect, spoke ill of the teacher or the preacher, or if I didn't put forth my best effort in everything that was asked of me.

I was drug to the kitchen sink to have my mouth washed out with soap if I uttered a profane four-letter word.

I was drug out to pull weeds in mom's garden and flowerbeds and cockleburs out of dad's field. I was drug to the homes of family, friends, and neighbors to help out some poor soul who had no one to mow the yard, repair the clothesline, or chop some firewood; and, if my mother had ever known that I took a single dime as a tip for this kindness, she would have drug me back to the woodshed.

Those drugs are still in my veins; and they affect my behavior in everything I do, say, and think. They are stronger than cocaine, crack, or heroin; and, if today's children had this kind of drug problem, America would be a better place.

—anonymous

Death Comes Quickly

I live in the neighborhood I was raised in. I'm in the same house as a matter of fact.

When my dad bought this house it was the first one built on the block. That was over 50 years ago. He built a garage some years later. From what I've heard, that caused trouble between he and my mom. She was worried that they couldn't afford it. Of course, that was before credit and the issue was the money coming out of their savings. Money comes easy these days through numerous credit offers. You don't need savings anymore and people have a lot more financial problems.

The neighborhood has changed a lot through the years. Most of the original families are gone. They were hard working people trying to raise good kids. There was only one family on the block where divorce was part of the picture. As kids, all we knew is that their dad was gone. Divorce was a foreign concept.

Gang members and drug dealers now inhabit the house across the street. It's common knowledge among the other neighbors. Some feel there is nothing they can do about it. Others don't want to get involved. And some are finding out what they can do and doing it.

Sometimes I look at the young people that hang around that house and find it hard to believe they are involved in criminal activity. The two older boys in the house have been arrested on gun related charges. The woman of the house is one of those "cool" moms who covers for her kids and makes sure they don't learn from their mistakes.

A week ago, one of their buddies was killed in a drive-by shooting. Things have been a little quieter than normal but you can tell they don't get it. Life goes on and death comes quickly.

In my morning prayers, I pray two things for the people across the street. First, I pray that I would love them. Second, I pray that they would end up in jail. Maybe removed to that place, they would turn to Jesus and their life could be changed.

Philip