For all of you who take pleasure in poking fun at my less than perfect eyesight, here is the view from my world. In the six circles of this little test, I see the number 25 in the top left circle. Everything else is just vomit to me. I don't know the proper diagnosis for this condition, but I do know that makes me severely color-blind. Yeah, I'm a blast at traffic lights.This is why I don't go shopping alone. Thanks to Ryan and Juli, and others who have generously given of their time to help me NOT look like an idiot in public; at least no more of an idiot than is natural.
If you've ever seen the inside of a telephone cable, then you are amazed right now that I even have a job. Phone cables are divided by colors. Actually, ten pairs of colors that are recurring depending on the size of the cable. The colors are blue-orange-green-brown-slate, and white-red-black-yellow-violet. They are divided by binders.
Here's how a 100 pair cable would count:
Pairs: 1-25 - blue/white binder
Pairs 26-50 - orange/white binder
Pairs 51-75 - green/white binder
Pairs 76-100 - brown/white binder
The individual pairs count 1-5, 6-10, 11-15, 16-20, and 21-25. Their corresponding colors are blue/white, orange/white, green/white, brown/white, and slate/white for 1-5. 6-10 would be blue/red, orange/red, green/red, brown/red, and slate/red. You get the picture, all the colors repeat (tip side/ring side) and only the ring and binder color changes. It's not really complicated as evidenced by my understanding of it. But it can get frustrating when the cable size is 2400 pairs instead of 100.
It is especially frustrating for someone with eyes like mine.
Obviously, you probably don't care any more about phone work than I do. It's not exactly my passion. But I do have a point to make. In nine years of placing and splicing these cables, not one splice that I have made has ever been turned back as defective. That means that, even with severe color-blindness, I have somehow managed to get every single pair in the right place, and in the right order. I can't pick out matching clothes but I can splice little, tiny, colored wires. I have overcome a severe handicap to perform my job. And that has to be the work of God.
We are all called to do certain "jobs" for God. With those duties come handicaps that stand in the way of us being effective for God's causes. Moses had a speech impediment, for example. But just as Moses' handicap was overcome, God will also give us ways to overcome our deficiencies. Some people don't like to speak in public, some don't like to pray out loud, and some don't like be seen at all. God is big enough to get us past all those things. He won't lead us to do something without equipping us for the task.
Remember the words Paul heard from God, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." That is still true today for all of us.
His righteousness is made perfect in our un-righteousness; His humility in our pride, and His love in our in-ability to love apart from Him.
Okay, I'm on vacation so there will be no more shop-talk from me this week.
I hope everyone has a good day tomorrow. (At work! Ha!)
