Jumper Cables

10/31/22 • 2 min

Years ago, I had a friend who was a bass player for a nationally known artist, who shall remain nameless. My friend told me how the artist traveled from city to city in a long black limousine, while the rest of the band traveled in a worn out, cargo van. The star rode in style, while the band rode in a pile. The limo, however, began having battery problems, so they carried jumper cables.
Now the star of the show didn’t want any of his fans to see him being jumpstarted, so after every concert there were always a few fans at the rear entrance waiting on the artist to come out the back door. The star would autograph merch, have his picture taken and talk with the fans, hoping they wouldn't stay long. When the coast was finally clear, the chauffeur, hat and all, would put the jumper cables from the van onto the limos struggling battery. Night after night, they went through this hilarious routine. A brand new battery, of course, would have solved the problem.

When we receive Christ, we receive His power. So if the preaching and music fire us up, but our spiritual battery is dead the rest of the week, there may be a serious problem. We may only be getting a temporary jumpstart to a weak or dead battery. However, when God’s Spirit resides in us, our batteries can be fully charged, empowered to do His work. Which option do we choose? Becoming a sleek limousine that is dying inside, or a well-worn cargo van that has the power to do what it is designed to do?

https://m.facebook.com/comediantimlovelace
https://www.instagram.com/timlovelacecomedy
https://youtube.com/@TimLovelaceComedy

https://m.facebook.com/comediantimlovelace
https://www.instagram.com/timlovelacecomedy
https://youtube.com/@TimLovelaceComedy

Previous Episode

Putting Out Fires

My cousin David and I used to take our Red Ryder BB guns and go on Daniel Boone hunting adventures, which meant we shot a lot of coke cans off a fence post. On one such outing we were walking down a dirt road, when we saw smoke. We heard a truck leaving the smoky area, so we walked a little farther and saw flames. Jumping the barbed wire fence, we starting fighting the fire with all our might, beating out the flames with sticks and pine tree limbs, as well as throwing dirt and stomping on it to beat the band. We both inhaled some smoke and were coughing, but we were on a mission. Eventually, we put out the last flame. Covered in black soot, we were exhausted, but we had saved the woods and possibly some farmhouses, so we were elated. We ran Back to David’s house and retold our firefighting experience to his family. We felt like heroes.

But later that evening a man stopped by and asked my Uncle Paul if it was any of his boys that put out a fire. We told him that it was us, and he asked us not to do it again, because he was intentionally burning off an area of the woods. He added that he had to restart the fire later on.

This was my first time to hear about a controlled fire; how to burn undergrowth, bad insects and more. I learned that fire isn’t always bad. It can serve a purpose. Sometimes the fiery trials that burn into our day are for our good. The book of James explains how trials develop our faith and patience, so when we smell spiritual smoke, it may sound very strange, but count it all joy!

https://m.facebook.com/comediantimlovelace
https://www.instagram.com/timlovelacecomedy
https://youtube.com/@TimLovelaceComedy

Next Episode

The Azalea Bush

A friend came to visit us and brought an unusual gift, a little azalea bush and a bag of fertilizer. The friend said, “The next time we come to see you, we will see how the azalea bush is doing, so don't let it die.” Oh, no pressure there!
Some people give gifts with a bow on top and strings attached. The problem is that I don’t have a green thumb. Mine is more the ashen gray variety. I planted it, using the fertilizer, but it looked like a pitiful Charlie Brown Christmas tree and got worse with each passing day. The internet told me how often to water the soil, but it still looked hopeless. The soil may have been moist, but the bush had bit the proverbial dust. So I said those famous three words, “Enough is enough.” With a shovel in my hand, and wondering what my friend would say on his next visit, I started to dig when I noticed a small green leaf. Then I said three more words that are not nearly as famous...that was close!
There was life after all. I jumped up and down like a new contestant on The Price is Right.
A few weeks later, one small pink flower appeared. I was thrilled! Now every Springtime, my family enjoys a pink azalea bush with beautiful flowers.
Never give up on others or yourself. In Psalms, David wrote, “And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season: his leaf also shall not wither. Remember, our lives too must be planted, fed, watered and rooted in Christ. Then our fruit will come in due season.

https://m.facebook.com/comediantimlovelace
https://www.instagram.com/timlovelacecomedy
https://youtube.com/@TimLovelaceComedy