A Visit to the Locksmith

Jesus told him, "What you are about to do, do quickly."

John 13:37

I fixed the lock on my car yesterday. It is no big deal, really, until you consider that I have not been able to open the driver's door for several years now. It's a chronic problem that I never bothered to deal with until my dad insisted a couple of days back. And what did it cost me? 20 minutes and 200 Naira. That's it. 20 minutes to deal with a several-years-old problem. Why I didn't deal with it earlier, I have no idea. The solution was always so simple but going out of my way to do it always seemed prohibitive. I look back and remember how many times I had to walk round the car to open the passenger-side door. The ladies thought it was chivalry but I knew better.

It's the evil we call procrastination. We all deal with it on a day-to-day basis and what we lose because of it is incredible. I have only to look back at the year passed to see just how much I put things off and what they cost me. Deadlines missed, plans spoiled, opportunities spurned. All because I chose to leave things undone. Someone has joked, "Why do today what you can leave till tomorrow." We may think that it is funny until we realize that perhaps, to a large extent, that is how we have been living our lives up to this point. What a waste! No, I prefer to ask myself, "Why leave till tomorrow what you can do today?"

It is also terribly unsettling to remember how I would go around the car to open the far door. At a moment it seems a negligible inconvenience but when you multiply that by several times a day for several years the thought becomes quite discomfiting. I wonder if this is the way we circumnavigate little problems in our lives rather than tackling them head-on. They may seem small but until they are dealt with they will continue to cause us trouble and indeed master us.

This thought reminds me of Solomon's Shulammite bride in Song of Songs 2. "Quick! Catch all the little foxes," she cries, "before they ruin the vineyard of your love." She knows too well that it's the little things that complicate the big things. The same principle applies to work, business and, yes, love.

Have a lovely Valentine's Day.

With love, Doosuur.

Old Money

Provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will not be exhausted, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys.

Luke 12:33

I am sure you, like me, have occasionally found yourself stuck with old currency that you could not use. You ask yourself how in the world you accepted such a worn-out, torn note and curse your luck. You wonder what to do about it. Because you do not live in Kano. You see, in this old city, anything that has ever been used as legal tender is acceptable. From old 50 Kobo coins to the dirtiest, ugliest 5 Naira note you'll ever see. I sometimes wonder that I have yet to see shillings in use there.

Unfortunately for me, I came back to Jos with a lot of old, dirty currency as change. I stopped by the roadside today to buy some yoghurt from a Fan merchant but the disgust on his face as I counted out the money said it all: "Your currency is not acceptable here." Money that I had used freely just a few days ago was no longer tenable and these old notes had suddenly lost their value.

Reminds me of Jesus' teachings in Luke 12. First he tells the parable of the Rich Fool, a pretty wise man by this world's standards, seeing as he was so successful in farming and business. But he was unwise in thinking his life was guaranteed and for trusting in his riches. God's reply to him was none too kind: "You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you." Jesus said in conclusion, "This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich toward God." As wealthy as this man was, his currency was not acceptable in Heaven.

In the next part of the chapter, Jesus teaches, "Do not worry… Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? … Provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will not be exhausted … For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." I couldn't say it better myself. The bottom line I guess is that we must work for treasure that will be presentable when crunch time comes because then, your money will not matter. The sign reads: Earthly Currency Not Accepted Here.

With love, Doosuur.

Old Money

Provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will not be exhausted, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys.

Luke 12:33

I am sure you, like me, have occasionally found yourself stuck with old currency that you could not use. You ask yourself how in the world you accepted such a worn-out, torn note and curse your luck. You wonder what to do about it. Because you do not live in Kano. You see, in this old city, anything that has ever been used as legal tender is acceptable. From old 50 Kobo coins to the dirtiest, ugliest 5 Naira note you'll ever see. I sometimes wonder that I have yet to see shillings in use there.

Unfortunately for me, I came back to Jos with a lot of old, dirty currency as change. I stopped by the roadside today to buy some yoghurt from a Fan merchant but the disgust on his face as I counted out the money said it all: "Your currency is not acceptable here." Money that I had used freely just a few days ago was no longer tenable and these old notes had suddenly lost their value.

Reminds me of Jesus' teachings in Luke 12. First he tells the parable of the Rich Fool, a pretty wise man by this world's standards, seeing as he was so successful in farming and business. But he was unwise in thinking his life was guaranteed and for trusting in his riches. God's reply to him was none too kind: "You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you." Jesus said in conclusion, "This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich toward God." As wealthy as this man was, his currency was not acceptable in Heaven.

In the next part of the chapter, Jesus teaches, "Do not worry… Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? … Provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will not be exhausted … For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." I couldn't say it better myself. The bottom line I guess is that we must work for treasure that will be presentable when crunch time comes because then, your money will not matter. The sign reads: Earthly Currency Not Accepted Here.

With love, Doosuur.