Mr. Male

 

Mr. Male was my sophomore English teacher.  He made grammar fun.  I know that “grammar” and “fun” doesn’t make sense to most of you, but it is true.  Each day he came to class with a quiz that was twenty sentences that had some sort of a grammar question.  It might be to identify the subject and predicate or to find the prepositions.  He would pick a girl to write the twenty sentences on the chalkboard.  We had to copy the sentences on our notebook paper and answer the question of the day.  Mr. Male would stroll around the classroom making wise cracks while we were copying the board work.  After we had answered the questions, we exchanged papers and graded them.  Then after we had returned the graded papers to the owners, Mr. Male collected the papers and recorded the grades.  We never had homework; we never had a test; we never had a textbook; we just had a quiz every day.  It seems that when I got a question wrong, I remembered the right answer.  I learned each part of speech, the types of sentences, phrases and clauses, subordinating conjunctions, and active and passive voices in Mr. Male’s English class.  All while copying, answering, and laughing.  Mr. Male was different.  He did not do things by the teacher’s manual, but he was an effective teacher.  Hey, we should use our abilities in just the way that the dear Lord has equipped us to be.  God didn’t make us all the same; we are unique.  Paul said in Ephesians 4:11&12, “And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ.”  The dear Lord gave each of us our special abilities to be a blessing to others.  Now, use your God-given abilities today … for God’s glory and to build up one another.

Rat Trap

 

My wife hates me to say anything about the rat in the basement, but there is such a good lesson there that I cannot ignore it.  I must say that my rat is not one of those nasty disease-bearing rats.  She is (or was - spoiler alert) an outdoor seed-eating rat who just came indoors for the winter.  Her only mistake was to come into MY basement.  And my mistake was to use a mouse trap, which she got out of, which she then became aware of.  So, when I set a rat trap, she was too wary to make that mistake a second time.  It took two weeks, but I was patient and knew that her hunger and carelessness would eventually wear down her wariness and self-control.  So, I moved the trap near the basement wall where it would seem safer to the rat.  I used three kernels of corn a few inches away from the trap to get her used to eating free corn.  Then I superglued a kernel of corn to the trap trigger.  Each night the floor corn was gone, but the trap was still set.  She knew better than to eat that kernel … at least for some time.  I sprinkled the free corn each night for two weeks, and each night the free corn was gone.  After two weeks of patiently setting out corn around the trap, I stopped giving free corn, and I waited.  One night nothing.  But the second night, she wanted corn so bad that her hunger overcame her caution, and she ate the only kernel available, which was on the trigger.  And SNAP!  She was caught.  What a great lesson for us on how Satan wears us down with temptations.  Hey, the devil has been at this game for six thousand years, and he is much wiser than we are.  Peter said in I Peter 5:8, “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour.”  Satan goes about looking for weak areas in our lives.  He pushes on doors to see which one is left unlocked.  And an unsecured door is an opportunity for the devil to gain entrance.  Hey, be serious; be vigilant.  Satan is our adversary, and he is ready to devour us!  Trust in the Lord.  Be wary of Satan and don’t fall for his bait!  (No picture is available. R.I.P.)

Rearview Mirror

 

My dad taught me how to drive.  And if you knew my dad, that was an experience.  He was a harsh and unforgiving teacher, but he wanted me to be a safe driver.  I learned to drive on my dad’s 1958 VW beetle.  It had 36 hp with a five-speed manual transmission and a top speed of 50 mph … downhill.  My dad insisted that I use my mirrors to back up.  He would fuss if I twisted my neck to look backwards.  And almost sixty years later, every MWF when I get home (in the dark) and have to back up my steep driveway, curve around to the back, and up to the ramp and handrail, I am thankful that he made me use my mirrors.  And my children tell me the same thing because I taught them to drive just like my dad taught me to drive (I fussed at them too).  But, have you ever noticed that car mirrors are not as big as the windshield?  That’s because it is more important to see where you are going than where you have been.  But when you back up, you need the mirrors to see where you are going (backwards).  Hey, the same is true in life.  Look forward, but occasionally be reminded of where you have been.  Learn from the past (mistakes) but look to the future (successes).  Solomon said in Proverbs 22:28, “Remove not the ancient landmark, which thy fathers have set.”  Remember the past but look forward to the future.