air conditioning – Grits with Grace

Family, Grace, gratitude, life, Scripture, sovereignty of God, thankful

Up and Down

Posted on July 14, 2025July 13, 2025 by Dewayne Taylor

“Do not be conformed to this age but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” Romans 12:2a (CSB)

First you don’t…and then you do. It is funny how different things can cause us to see, well, different things. So, after church one Wednesday night, when I got home my wife Judy and I sat down to finish watching some random feel-good movie I had started. As I sat there, I realized that the room seemed warm. So, after a few minutes, I got up and checked and sure enough. It wasn’t my imagination…the room really was warm. Well, in this case it wasn’t a matter of adjusting the thermostat…it meant that our downstairs air conditioning unit was NOT working.

I checked a couple of things but all to no avail. So, I decided I would call the air conditioning fix-it guys in the morning and off we went to bed. Now for the good news. We have a separate unit for the upstairs and gratefully it was working fine. Thank you, Lord. So, we slept well, and I got up the next morning, had a couple of cups of coffee and some Jesus time and then a little later called the fix-it guys. Turns out they could come first thing in that morning (God wink) and at 8:30 am they were here. The compressor was bad so that meant a major repair—but maybe more on that later. But it also meant no quick fix. Parts had to be ordered and work done—but more on that too.

But even though it was a hot day, the house stayed reasonably cool…oh, 83 degrees…warm but tolerable. So, later that night I went upstairs to get ready for bed…again grateful for the upstairs unit working so very well. After a while, I realized I had to go back downstairs (forgot to take the night meds) and when I got downstairs it seemed almost unbearably warm. Had it gotten warmer? What was the deal? Well, the answer is simply profound.

You see, when I lived in the warmer climate downstairs, I grew used to the warmer temperature. But only a few minutes of the cooler upstairs bliss caused me to realize just how warm the warm was and just how cool the cool was. I guess I’m trying to say we seem to get used to what we live in. Wait…that’s important. Whatever we allow or tolerate, can quickly become at least somewhat tolerable or acceptable in our lives.

Of course, that can be good…there’s a lot to be said for learning to be content but if that something is something that is not good…that is dangerous. You know, some habit, some circumstance, some environment is allowed to be a part of our lives and soon, too soon, we become comfortable with what used to make us uncomfortable. I wonder how much in this changing culture have we become comfortable with—ok with? That is a good question.

The solution to this is the same solution as air conditioning. Spend some time in the cool and you will always be able to feel and know how warm the room is. It will rarely become “comfortable.” We need to spend time with God every day, time in prayer and time in His Book, and that will help us keep our spiritual sensitivity. One of my favorite go-to verses is Romans 12:2 where it warns us not to allow the world to pressure us…to be too comfortable with what should be uncomfortable. It goes on to say we should allow the Word from the God Book to transform us…to help us keep our spiritual equilibrium…or spiritual sensitivity.

Well, hopefully the air conditioning will be fixed in a couple of days but until then, well, we will keep being grateful for what is upstairs and for the lesson it is teaching us. I’m grateful God allows these things to teach us His big truths…like the one we know so well…that no matter what…He’s got this. Bro. Dewayne

Family, forgiveness, friends, Grace, gratitude, life, love, loving others, prayer, Scripture, sovereignty of God, thankful, Trials

Thermostats

Posted on June 28, 2024June 26, 2024 by Dewayne Taylor

Adopt the same attitude as that of Christ Jesus.” Philippians 2:5

It just looked hot. The other day I was lying on the couch in my living room. It is one of those nice long couches with plenty of room. Even though I am not extremely tall, or as you might say, “height challenged,” it’s nice to know there is room to spare. Our couch sits in front of a bay window, so I had a nice view of the trees outside and the clear blue summer sky. It was good. I knew from a thermometer that registers the outside temperature that it was hot outside…really hot. And, as I was lying there, I was just thinking how grateful I was for the guy who invented air conditioners. Air conditioning is one of those things we take for granted and having been raised down south with only a window fan…well, let’s just say I’m grateful.

We are blessed at our house to have central air conditioning. I have this thingy on the wall called a thermostat and it talks to my air conditioning…they are good friends and speak their own special language. So, I tell the thermostat what temperature I like, and it tells the air conditioning. When it is needed, the thermostat prods the air conditioning and says, “Hey, we need some cool air” and just like that he fires up (no pun intended) and cools the room down. It is a great relationship. Both are needed and I am grateful for both.

Now the thermometer and the thermostat are not the same thing. You see the thermometer simply tells me the temperature, but it can’t do anything about it. I could tell the thermometer, “Hey, I’m hot,” but all it can do is confirm the truth. The thermostat on the other hand, can do something about it…and it does. One instrument tells the condition of the room but the other can control the condition of the room. How about that?

So, have you ever wondered if you are a thermometer or a thermostat? Well, probably not, but the truth is all of us at one time or another are one or the other. We find ourselves in a room of people and soon there is a discussion that goes south, and the temperature starts to rise. If we are thermometers all we do is reflect the temperature and watch it rise. But if we are thermostats, we can help control the temperature with wise words and kind actions and maybe just maybe keep friends, friends.

Jesus was a great thermostat. The four Books that talk about Him (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John) are filled with great examples. One time some rock chucking religious people wanted to stone a woman because she had sinned. They asked Jesus what He thought, and He told them OK but the person without sin had to cast the first rock. Boy, that cooled things off. One by one the rock chucker’s stepped away till it was only He and the woman left. He told her he wasn’t going to condemn her and invited her to go and sin no more. Amazing.

Today, especially these days, we need to be thermostats. Every day there are situations that need a good thermostat and we Jesus’ people need to rise to the occasion. Always be ready to set your thermostat to grace and then spread it around. Anybody can start a fire, or a fight or raise the temperature in a situation. Anyone can reflect the temperature, but we are called to do more. We are called to be like Jesus.

Paul, one of the guys who wrote the New Testament, said, “Adopt the same attitude as that of Christ Jesus.” And what would that be? It was His willingness to always go last instead of first. It was His willingness to forgive and not condemn. It was His willingness to love the loveless, touch the untouchable, and care for the most unlikely. It was being a thermostat. I know that’s not always easy. It’s easier to tell a thermostat what to do than be one! But don’t worry, God is ready and willing to help. He loves it when His kids act like His Son. No doubt…He’s got this. Bro. Dewayne

Family, forgiveness, friends, Grace, gratitude, life, love, loving others, prayer, Scripture, thankful

Thermostats

Posted on June 29, 2022June 28, 2022 by Dewayne Taylor

Adopt the same attitude as that of Christ Jesus.” Philippians 2:5

It just looked hot. The other day I was lying on the couch in my living room. It is one of those nice long couches with plenty of room. Even though I am not extremely tall, you might say, “height challenged,” it’s nice to know there is room to spare. Our couch sits in front of a bay window, so I had a nice view of the trees outside and the clear blue summer sky. It was good. I knew from a thermometer that registers the outside temperature that it was hot outside…really hot. And, as I was lying there, I was just thinking how grateful I was for the guy who invented air conditioners. Air conditioning is one of those things we take for granted and having been raised down south with only a window fan…well, let’s just say I’m grateful.

Now the thermometer and the thermostat are not the same thing. You see the thermometer simply tells me the temperature, but it can’t do anything about it. I could tell the thermometer, “Hey, I’m hot,” but all it can do is confirm the truth. The thermostat on the other hand, has the ability to do something about it…and it does. One instrument tells the condition of the room but the other has the ability to control the condition of the room. How about that?

So, have you ever wondered if you are a thermometer or a thermostat? Well, probably not, but the truth is all of us at one time or another is one or the other. We find ourselves in a room of people and soon there is a discussion that goes south, and the temperature starts to rise. If we are thermometers all we do is reflect the temperature and watch it rise. But if we are thermostats, we can help control the temperature with wise words and kind actions and maybe just maybe keep friends, friends.

Jesus was a great thermostat. The four Books that talk about Him (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John) are filled with great examples. One time some rock chucking religious people wanted to stone a woman because she had sinned. They asked Jesus what He thought and He told them OK but the person without sin had to cast the first rock. Boy, that cooled things off. One by one the rock chucker’s stepped away till it was only He and the woman left. He told her he wasn’t going to condemn her and invited her to go and sin no more. Amazing.

Today, especially in these days, we need to be thermostats. Every day there are situations that need a good thermostat and we Jesus’ people need to rise to the occasion. Always be ready to set your thermostat to grace and then spread it around. Anybody can start a fire, or a fight or raise the temperature in a situation. Anyone can reflect the temperature, but we are called to do more. We are called to be like Jesus.

Family, friends, Grace, gratitude, life, love, loving others, Scripture, thankful, Trials

An Angel Named Tom

Posted on February 21, 2022February 20, 2022 by Dewayne Taylor

Whatever is good and perfect is a gift coming down to us from God our Father, who created all the lights in the heavens.” James 1:17

It was the same story every night. When my family and I lived in Cobden we had the adventure of living in a 100-year-old Victorian home. It really was an adventure. It was partially restored and over the thirteen years we lived there, we changed and upgraded so many things. It was kinda like the kid’s song, “The Song that Never Ends.” So many of the things we did were low budget because, well, we had a low budget. Money was a little tight, but it seemed God always provided.

The house didn’t have air conditioning and sometimes that was a bit uncomfortable. It did have one of those big attic fans…you know, the kind that can suck the sheets right off the bed. That provided a cool breeze through the windows on those comfortable, Southern Illinois, nights. However, if you’ve ever lived in a place like Southern Illinois, you know that often the days and nights are anything but comfortable. It is more like living in the Amazon basin in South America. Two words described it: hot and humid. On those nights, there was no attic fan in the world that was going to help.

Eventually we got a used window air conditioner and put it in our bedroom. Then we would make beds on the floor, and everyone would sleep in the same room until the nights became more bearable. We sounded like the Walton’s as we all said goodnight to one another. This went on for several years until one day hope…and help…arrived. Someone had a used central air conditioning unit that they sold to us on the cheap. The only problem, the upstairs didn’t any duct work or vents…nada…zero. And then God sent us a couple of heroes…or at least to us they were heroes.

A family in our church had a son who installed air conditioning. His name was Tom. He lived an hour away but, knowing our plight, he wanted to help. He said he would come over after work (driving an hour) and install our air conditioning…including building the duct work we would need. And, that’s not all, his dad Bill, who attended our church, joined the team. So, for the next couple of weeks, in the heat of summer, after working a long day, these two men came and climbed into our attic and worked and sweated. Oh yes, I was there too but only as a nuisance, I’m sure.

After a couple of weeks of intense, hot labor, finally the day came to flip the switch. Wonderful, magically cool air began flowing softly through the new installed system. What was normal for so many was heaven for us. What had been a hot summer routine of pallets on the floor and life with the Waltons came to a close. And, even now, as my fingers mash the keys on the keyboard, I am smiling. I am just amazed how God provided this family and these friends to help us…without taking a dime. Two angels of mercy with the unlikely names of Tom and Bill.

Over the years, there have been other stories, other angels of mercy and I’ll write about them too one day. The stories need to be told because they are stories of love—both the love of God and love of God lived out. The stories need to be told because they remind us, all of us, to be grateful for the things God has provided through this great adventure called life. James, the half-brother of Jesus said, “Whatever is good and perfect is a gift coming down to us from God our Father, who created all the lights in the heavens.” There is no doubt in my mind that is true…not just for me…but for you too.

It’s a bit tricky but be sure and look around for the everyday blessings that God sends your way…oh, and He does send them. When you see them, remember them, write them down in your heart or in a journal. Then, when leaner times come, they will remind you of the faithfulness of your Dearest Daddy. Also, they will also remind you that no matter what, you can know, you can believe that, “He’s got this.” Bro. Dewayne