What's Important in Life

So, I asked God a really stupid question. "Will you please show me what is important in life?" Be careful what you ask for. I know what is supposed to be important in life, but often times, I don't prioritize or live those things out. For example, I know that my wife is more important than my job, but I don't always show that with my behavior and attitude.

We were gearing up to move to Morocco. A friend of mine, Clark asked me what would be a "win" upon returning after our year spent overseas. I thought about it and answered, "A win for me would be to come home knowing what is really important in life." Thus, the question turned into prayer.

God has a funny way of showing us things. We left for Morocco with a good salary under my belt. Plenty of money for morocco and enough to even travel to Europe a bit. We were trying for a baby, we were both excited about moving, things were on the up and up. Then disappointment knocked on our door. We had a miscarriage, my salary was cut down more than 2/3, our apartment situation ended up being a little different than what we thought, We both kept getting sick, I had to work more (to make up for the difference financially), and to top it all off; I left Robin's Nikon D40 digital SLR Camera on the train from Fes to Meknes this past weekend. A camera which I bought for her by selling a couple of my guitars and all my recording equipment.

So I have to wonder, "God, are you answering my prayer?" It hurts like hell, but maybe it's actually heaven? Perhaps God is stripping me away from things. Perhaps he's trying to tell me that money is not important, and neither are cameras for that matter. Maybe he's saying that having another baby isn't important or that where we live doesn't matter that much either...but I don't think that's his character at all.

No, this is not a jaded entry where I write about how bad God is. It's quite the opposite. He is a fighter, and he smiles. He's a happy God who delights in his children. God LOVES to provide for me. He hates that I left the camera on the train, and he wept when we lost another baby. He is a God who intimately cares about us stumping our toe or being too late to catch the train because we couldn't find a taxi.

So, no. I won't go there. He IS answering my prayer, but it's not HIM who's CAUSING hurt and disappointment. The disappointing things are happening because he allows it. Yes, he is soverareign, etc. but he is also good. He is not a God that thinks pulling the rug from underneith his children is funny. He's a God who answers prayer, and he's the God who says, "What's important in life is you finding security in who I truly am and what I'm truly like. Not in what I do or what I allow to happen." As Graham Cooke once said,
"There is no security in what God is doing. You never know what he's going to do next. He's unpredictable. There's no security in that place. There is only security in WHO GOD IS. In his nature; what he is really, really, really, like. And God is good."

I'm finding as I grow older, that our circumstances in life are neutral for the most part. They just ARE. It is us, that assigns them meaning. We put tags on our days like: Good, Bad, Okay. We decide if something was right or wrong, or good or bad, or hurtful or healing. My situation right now sucks. That's the meaning I'm assigning to it. But can't I dwell in sucky circumstances with a good and happy God that is more than willing to help me, comfort me, and give me the occasional high five?

I will continue to pray for God to show me what is important in life. I will also pray for a baby, for a camera, and for money too - I think he'd love to give us all of those things and to "restore the years that the locus has eaten."

Diner Table Trick #1 - Lemon Teeth

So, you're sitting at the table with a bunch of your friends. Conversations come to a lull and everyone is thinking about what everyone else is about to say that might start the new string of conversation. What I'm about to unveil to you will entirely ruin that moment. Not only will it ruin the 7 min lull, but it will completely destroy it into something that will either release laughter from your friends or total embarrassment from you. I give you...(drum roll)...Lemon Teeth.

STEP 1 - Order a wedge of lemon for your water or lime for your favorite Mexican beer.

STEP 2 - Peel the wedge. Take your knife (from the table - have to say that for all you boyscouts out there). Flip the lemon wedge over (white side up) and cut 5 straight lines through the peel leaving about 1/8 inch of peel in tact along the top rim.

STEP 3 - Invert the peel and place it between your teeth and your upper lip. Make sure the white side is facing outward. Now wait for the laughs!

I'm not sure where I got this from or when I started doing it, but it seems like something I've just always done and known about. So, enjoy the fun and remember guys, it can win a girls heart (well almost)...especially if that girl is a few feet away in a high chair!

Homemade AC Unit

It is super hot in Fes. It is so hot that you will actually sweat cheese. Because I did not want my family to die by death of sweaty cheese, I read online how to make my own Air Conditioner.

An engineering student, Geoff, in Ontario, Canada lived in housing without AC. During the Summer, as temperatures rose, so did his brilliance. You can read more about his Homemade Air Conditioner. It created quite a buzz in Canada, and I'm very thankful that he shared his idea with the world.

Trying to follow Geoff's original design, here's what I did.

First, I crudely shaped the 1/4 inch copper tubing (7 meters) around the front surface of the fan. Couldn't find zip-ties in Morocco, so I used twine instead.

Next, I cut my 1/4 inch rubber tubing into two strips (originally 7 meters long). Then I took each strip and attached an end at each of the separate ends of the copper tubing.

One end of one of the plastic tubes goes into the giant bucket of ice water.

And the other end goes through the bottom of our balcony door out to the drain.

How it Works

To get it started you just prime the siphon by sucking on the end where the water will drain. Once it starts pouring out, you know it's working. After you have the siphon working, the ice cold water flows from the bucket of water through the copper tubing attached to the fan's surface, and out to the drain. The copper tubing gets icy cold. The fan then blows over the tubing which in turn makes the air very cool.

According to Geoff, if you have a decent sized water container, the cool air should last for about 3 hours depending on how fast your siphon is. He also says that it can cool off a room in about 20 min. We will be using ours for the first time tonight, so I'll let everyone know how it goes.

And THAT, my friends, is how you stay cool in Fes!