We shouldn’t be afraid of failure. Instead, we should be afraid of being successful at the things that don’t matter.
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Have we maximized our time? Have we taken every opportunity God has given us? Or have we let our days become consumed with things that don’t matter?
Ask me what I did on my day off? Spent about six total hours dismantling my sister’s Canon SD400 to troubleshoot why the lens wouldn’t retract.
Apparently this is a common problem.
So after much research, I collected a bunch of illustrated guides from various places on the web and went to town.
Clean out any dirt/debris from both the lens and gear box.
Unscrew things in sections. For each section, get a blank piece of paper and diagram where all the screws are. As you unscrew stuff, place the screw on your diagram in its approximate location.
This will make your life infinitely less complicated as you put your camera back together. Now you don’t have to worry about which screw and which size screw goes where.
Just be sure you put these diagrams away from your work area. A small bump will send your screws flying and make your diagram worthless. ;)
I was able to clean out a lot of sand from the inside of the camera (i.e. lens mechanism, gear box). The lens now retracts and extends. It used to not do that. I’m awesome!
Some of the gears controlling the movement of the lens are stripped. That prevents the lens from extending/retracting smoothly and without a lot of grinding sounds.
The camera is un-fixable. I now have a slick-looking paper weight.
My sister should give up being an agronomy major. Then she would be far less excited to take her camera into a soil pit.
I find myself praying a lot lately. Praying on the beach, in small group. Over the phone with friends and in my own quiet times with Jesus.
But I’m laying here in bed asking myself when was the last time I just chilled with Jesus?
I’ve been praying for a lot people. It’s been awesome. The fact that I find myself praying so much for people is an answer to prayer. But all this praying has been a “push” relationship with Jesus. I’m pushing things his way and find myself not “pulling” much.
There’s just something about chillin’ with Jesus with no agenda. It’s these times I find myself most at peace with God. My spirit comes more in line with His Spirit. My thoughts, His thoughts. I get to pull from the very source of life.
Alex. This is your reminder. You need to chill with Jesus more.
Here’s some more quote lovin’ from Andy Stanley in Communicating for a Change.
… spiritual maturity is gauged by application not contemplation. James says it best, “Faith without deeds is useless. (James 2:20)” “Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. (James 1:22)”
When asked which of the commandments were the greatest He summarized the entire law with two action-oriented imperatives, love God and love your neighbor.
It’s interesting that the group who knew the Old Testament Scriptures best were the very ones who considered Jesus a blasphemer and arranged for His crucifixion.
Acts of obedience allow our faith to intersect with God’s faithfulness. It is at that intersection that we see God work. And when we see Him work our faith gets bigger.
~ Andy Stanley in Communicating for a Change
Ever find yourself praying for more faith?
Pastor Stovall said something today that reminds me of my tendency to pray and wait on God. “Waiting on God does not mean laying up on your couch with the remote (paraphrase).”
Now re-read the quote above from Andy Stanley.
There is so much truth to that quote. The Bible even confirms it. ;)
James 4:8 (NIV)
8 Come near to God and he will come near to you. […]
After we pray for more faith, how many steps of obedience have we taken? Nada? Zero, zilch, zippo? Are we sitting on the couch flippin’ through the same old channels, watching the same old shows? Re-runs suck.
Having powerless faith sucks even more.
Faith is built at the intersection of our obedience and God’s faithfulness. God’s faithfulness to draw near to us as we draw near to him.
One step of obedience brings us two steps closer to the faith we desire.
What one step can you take today?