Wax on, Wax off...

Ralph Macchio was way hot as Daniel-san in the original Karate Kid.

Dreamy!!!



As Mr. Miyagi was training him so he could defend himself against those jerks at the Cobra Kai Dojo, he gave Daniel-san some odd training techniques. Rather than showing him how to block a kick, Mr. Miyagi told him to wax his cars, paint his fences, and sand his floors. Sounds like a scam.

And that's just what foul-mouthed Daniel-san tells Mr. Miyagi when he felt he had done enough. But Mr. Miyagi showed him just what he had learned.

While all the waxing, sanding, and painting seemed completely unrelated to the task of learning enough to show Johnny Lawrence that he wasn't to be messed with, Mr. Miyagi had been teaching him all along. 

I've noticed some wax-on/wax-off assignments from God recently. Walking around the block by Noah's school and praying, I noticed it was trash day for the surrounding neighborhood. One of the neighbor's trash bags had been ripped open by a local dog, with all their scraps and evidence of the week that had just passed. 

As I walked by, I felt God nudging my heart. It seemed He wanted me to pick up the trash. So I kept walking. I decided I would get a bag from my car and pick it up on my next lap. I forgot to stop. So I circled again, still feeling God's words on my heart. I grabbed an empty bag from my car, and walked to the yard. As I began to pick up pieces of this stranger's garbage, I discovered garbage of a family just like mine, right down to their love of Chick-fil-a. 

While nothing obviously life-changing happened from me obeying, God asked me to do it for a reason. Whether it was for that family to not have garbage all over their lawn, for me to learn a lesson in humility, for me to have a few moments focused on this family and praying for them, or for me to just learn to hear God's voice, I don't know. But I do know God wanted me to do it.

He has shared other things with me lately that He wanted me to do. And it seems the more I listen to Him and obey, the more "assignments" he is willing to give. And I really want them. There is nothing more satisfying than obeying God. 

If God is asking you to help someone unload their cart at Walmart, or say hello to a neighbor, do it. Even if it is something that doesn't seem to serve an immediate purpose. God is speaking and we are learning His voice.  

Wax on and wax off your way to a closer, more intimate and beautiful relationship with God. You won't regret it. 

"My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand." - John 10:27-28