FINDING THE BEST SHORTCUT

Saving time. It's something we all try to do. It no longer seems like a day is a full twenty-four hours. There are committments to keep, jobs around the home that need attention, and children who need help in getting to a sports activity, doing homework or just need some special time or advice from a parent. It's so much to keep up with. That's why shortcuts are used so often.

Perhaps one of the most obvious things we all do is take a shortcut when we are around the house. I may need a hammer to hit something but rather than find the hammer, I use a block of wood or other flat object that looks like it will do the trick. Eventually I realize that only a hammer will work and I go on a hunt for the tool that I should have used in the first place.

The shortcut I take more than anything else is using a substitute for a ladder or step stool. I am about 5 feet tall and it always seems that everything is just out of my reach. I know I need a ladder but I try to stand on the closest thing nearby that I think will support my weight. Things may come down from the shelf but they don’t come down safely. I may stand on a chair or on the bed to change a light bulb rather than take the time to use a short step stool. The other area where I use shortcuts is when I am in the garage. Since our garage does not look like the neat and tidy ones on the home improvement shows, I usually have trouble finding what I want. That’s when I try to reach across a box or behind an object and hope to latch onto it so I can avoid moving all the clutter to get to what I needed. Usually that is when something falls down and I have a worse situation not than when I started. The quick fix caused more trouble that if I would have done things right the first time.

Our family is not mechanically inclined. We depend on an auto shop for repairs and maintenance for our cars. But at times we may have to wait to get something fixed/ That is when we usually take some type of shortcut so we can have a little more time to get the money we need to pay for repairs. On one of our visits to Pennsylvania we had a problem with our car. We would be driving along and from time to time we could not get the car started. We took it in to a mechanic where we were vacationing and he told us how much it would cost to fix it properly. The cost seemed high and we really wanted to have it serviced at home. The mechanic then showed us how to get safely home with a "little fix". There was a little cog that had been broken off and whenever that broken part came up to the top where the belt was, the car would not start. Here's the way we ended up and drove home. We started the car and if the engine wouldn’t turn over, we lifted up the hood and took a hammer and hit in the area where the missing cog was. With a little ingenuity we could start the car and continue on our way. We traveled over 350 miles like that!

Another shortcut I remember was also on vacation. We were within a couple of hours from our destination when we cane across a road closed sigh. If we took the time to turn around and go back to the nearest town we would lose 30 minutes of our time. My husband and his parents had constructed the cabin in the ‘60’s where we were going. Since he was very familiar with the area and claimed that he knew a shortcut, I put my trust in him. He was very familiar with the area and we were tired and wanted to just get to the cabin where we could rest. After several minutes passed I began to question whether or not he had missed a turn. He reassured me that he knew what he was doing and it wouldn’t be much longer until we reached the road. After almost an hour of driving we ended up back at our starting point. Trying to save time and take the shortcut took a large amount of time that we could have saved if we had followed the sign in the first place.

I know of an elderly lady who is living by herself. She does not have a lot of resources of money to get everything fixed. She has been having trouble with her washing machine for years. Rather than buy another one she takes a stick of wood and places it inside the washer, gives it a couple of whacks and the washer starts the cycle again. Not the best way to solve a problem and definitely there is a risk of getting hurt in the process, but it is a quick fix solution and apparently works.

I have a friend who is single and decided to clean and update part of her home. She decided to work on the floors in the kitchen and dining room and together we scrubbed off the old dirt and polished the floor so it was clean and shiny. She had dining room table set on the floor with a rug under it. Rather than move the table and clean the floor underneath, she simply ignored it because no one could see it. On another occasion she decided to paint the walls in her front hall and living room. She worked hard to lighten up the dark colors and the room looked brighter and more inviting. But she had heavy furniture and a large aquarium that was set up. Rather than move the furniture or even try to move the aquarium, she painted only the portion of the wall that she could reach. So, in several areas the wall was the original color, you just couldn’t see it. Another homeowner who purchased the home would see the problem because it would be visible.

As humans we try to find quick fixes for solutions in life. We spend money that we don’t have to help us feel better. We go on vacations that we can’t afford. We may binge eat or not eat at all to help us deal with the emotions of hurt, anger, and loneliness. We work hard at covering up problem areas in our life rather than face the situation “head-on”.

What is the one stabilizing force in our life that can help us? For Christians and others who look to us for answers the only to have the strength to work through the difficult times of life is to take our problems to the Lord. There is no “quick fix” for healing our minds and getting us focused on actually solving the problem. There is no shortcut to salvation. The steps are simple and all we have to do is to put our trust in the Lord. There are no quick solutions here. You must first believe that Jesus is the Son of God and that through Him We don’t have the answers to many things in life and without Him we can do nothing. Once we have accepted His sovereignty, confessed our sins and asked for forgiveness we put Him in control of our life. When we move through life with Him at our side we can find peace and happiness. The result of letting Him into our life is the “best fix” for everything.