If you’ve ever bought a new car, you know that the car dealer has NO responsibility for the tires on that new car. If you have a problem, it’s totally between you and the tire manufacturer. But I once bought an expensive car that should have ridden as quiet as a mouse, but the tires made it sound like a truck. I kept track, in writing, of the times I talked to the dealer about the problem, and finally took it to the company and would you believe…they put new tires on it…a softer rubber that was as quiet as you expect on that kind of car.

Here’s another: I bought a new Cadillac that turned out to be under-powered. The dealer and I had a number of discussions until he finally had his mechanics make a list of things they thought were needed to help the situation. Well, the list got so big that they finally said the manufacturer would put a new motor in it for me. And we’re talking about 12 thousand dollars.

Want another? We know that if you’re near-sighted, it’s easy to have an operation that lets you throw away your glasses. But I was FAR-sighted, and they couldn’t help me. But I knew they’re learn how, so I watched the news, and sure enough, they came up with the solution. I had the operation, and immediately could see without glasses. But they warned that I’d probably have to use glasses for close reading. But while I was preparing to leave, a nurse “just happened” to mention that I would be a little NEAR-sighted now. I jumped on that like a bird on a grasshopper, and asked the surgeon whether he could now solve that minor problem. I ended up with good eyesight for both driving and reading. And here’s the best part: As they gave me the eye tests that precede an operation, they found that I had the faint beginnings of cataracts, but most folks waited until they couldn’t wait any longer, to have that surgery. I told the surgeon to do it now. No sense in waiting on a job that needed to be done. And that decision made the job covered by Medicare…no cost to me!

OK…one more and I’ll quit. My wife wears a hearing aid, and it came time to upgrade. The night before we were to try a new type, I went on-line in my computer and brought up the web-site of the company, and noticed that they had a $2,000.00 discount at this time on a certain style of hearing aid, and when we went for testing, the agent recommended a certain aid at a certain price, and when I mentioned the $2,000.00 discount offer, he checked and found that this much better aid would end up costing the same as the lesser aid he was recommending.

Coincidence in all these cases? I don’t think so. As a Christian, I pay tithing…ten percent of my income, and I’ve always said that nine dollars left after tithing, will go farther than the original ten. And God has a way of working that out. Think about it. And if you’re not yet a Christian, think about THAT, first. As Jesus said in a particular case concerning giving, “These ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone” (Matthew 23:23). Give your heart to Christ, and giving to Him in the other ways will be easier.

37BT Bill Thornton May 16, 2005