July 15, 2025

Hi Friends, 

Two pieces of cardboard, not much thicker than a piece of paper — that’s all it took for something magical to happen. Let me tell you about it.

They’re new doors with new hinges. They shouldn’t squeak! But they did. It was driving me crazy. I removed the hinge pins and re-lubricated them. It seemed quieter for a few days but then the annoying squeaking started again. There’s nothing worse than having to get up early in the morning for an appointment, dressing quietly and then tiptoeing out of the room, only to wake up Sharon when the door squeaks on its hinges as I’m trying to shut it quietly.

As I fumed about this turn of events, I also remembered that those hinge pins had been kind of sticky when I re-lubricated them. Maybe if I took them out again, cleaned them with solvent and reapplied the grease, it would work better. So, I did just that, only to find that the squeaking didn’t even stop for a few days. Arrraghhh!!! I tried elevating the pins so they didn’t go all the way into the hinge but that made only the most negligible of differences. This was ridiculous and I began to wonder if I had malfunctioning or broken hinges.

Then I called Jesse. He’s a professional carpenter and really good at what he does. For a young man (well, he’s young relative to me!), he is thoughtful and has gained insight from his life experience. He also has a willing spirit and gladly helps others. So Jesse came over one afternoon on the way home from work, listened to my litany of frustration, took a look at the door and stated matter of factly, “We can fix that quite easily. Do you have two pieces of very thin cardboard?” When I supplied that highly technical request, Jesse took a screwdriver and backed out the screws attaching the lower door hinge to the doorframe. He then inserted those two tiny pieces of cardboard, retightened the screws and … voilà. There was no more noise.

I actually wouldn’t have believed it was possible had I not seen it with my own eyes and experienced the travail of trying to solve the problem myself. The lower hinge was too tight against the frame and squealed when it rubbed against the frame as it closed. Those two little pieces of cardboard were all that was necessary to cause the hinge to miss the door and eliminate the sound and the friction which caused it.

In Exodus 31, Moses is told, ““See, I have chosen Bezalel son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah, and I have filled him with the Spirit of God, with wisdom, with understanding, with knowledge and with all kinds of skills— to make artistic designs for work in gold, silver and bronze, to cut and set stones, to work in wood, and to engage in all kinds of crafts.” Jesse is Bezalel to me. He is the living embodiment of the Christian understanding of incarnation. By applying his craft and experience to my problem, he solved it like magic.

What has God gifted you to do? Are you doing it with all your might as unto him? If you are, you are incarnating the gospel — living as Jesus would live if he lived his life through you. Your obedience and faithfulness is making magic happen — just as Jesse did for me and my house.

Blessings!

Doug