Challenge Central: a CBC devotional
By: Casey Korstanje
We discovered a forgotten treasure the other day, a little notebook buried in the bottom of a drawer Laurie was cleaning out.
The cover reads: Janet’s Bathroom Book. Christmas 1997. Janet is Laurie’s mom. She moved here from British Columbia in the mid 1990s and became a faithful member at Central.
She had a way of making friends. She made friends at her apartment building, at the church. She enjoyed and encouraged visits by all of our friends, and their kids, and her grandsons and all of their friends. There is a long list of people who regularly trekked up to “Gram’s” apartment for coffee and sweets, or dinner, or to play Scrabble or just to chat.
And it was the bathroom book that brought back those memories.
About the book.
Just after Janet moved to Ontario, she and Laurie went somewhere to a home show. You know, with distributors, and booths, and sellers showing their wares. They didn’t buy anything, but Janet did walk away with a free pad of paper and a pen from a guy representing Union Gas. When she got home, she emptied her pockets and for some reason left it in the bathroom.
Of course, when grandson number one went to use the facilities, he couldn’t resist writing a little joke on the “Union Gas” pad. And so, the bathroom book was born.
Janet left the pad in there and in no time it filled up with greetings and comments and bons mots from her guests.
Come Christmas 1997, Laurie replaced the pad with a hardcover notebook, which visitors enthusiastically embraced.
Perhaps too enthusiastically. I noted a warning on Jan. 17th. “OK crowd… nobody a hundred years from now cares about your bodily functions or regularity.”
And the word “crowd” fits. The little book is filled with notes from friends, neighbours, teenagers, family, kids.
“Coffee was good. Company was better! (couldn’t get the pen to work.)”
“I had no problem with the pen.”
“At last, a birthday cake. I’ve waited all week. Mmmmm good.”
“Hi, it’s me again. Had to come back for some more of those buns.”
“I was on a plane with 200 passengers and one bathroom.”
“Milk is supposed to be good for your skin.”
“How much milk does it take to fill a bath. And do you add a few Shreddies?”
“I went to coffee hour … and had tea. I’m such a rebel.”
“N, C and I are over for coffee. Brought S.”
“Good jam! I had raspberry-rhubarb.”
“T had her baby!”
“Happy Canada Day. Coffee, waffles. Great stuff.”
“I had tea today with the ladies. Sang happy 83rd birthday to P.”
And on it went. Page after page of little notes from appreciative people who dropped in, sure of a warm welcome, a cup of something hot and a treat. Didn’t matter if you were 83 or 14. Didn’t matter if you were family or not.
Janet loved the Lord, and her gift was serving others, loving others.
1 Peter 4: [8] Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins.
[9] Show hospitality to one another without grumbling. (ESV)
As I read all those funny little notes, I remembered some of the other stuff going on in the lives of the writers.
There was hardship, joy, grief, sickness, new life, fear and stress. There was hope, prayer, love. All of the stuff of life. The prayer list then was as long as the prayer list today.
And I realized that Jesus used Janet as a way to bring some light and rest into a hard world. It’s how the Lord answers so many of the prayers flung up to heaven in difficult times.
Peter continues in verse 10 of the passage cited above:
1 Peter 4: [10] As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace: [11] whoever speaks, as one who speaks oracles of God; whoever serves, as one who serves by the strength that God supplies—in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ. To him belong glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen. (ESV)
“April 25. Happy Easter. Jesus is Risen, just as He said!”
“I think you need a new toilet seat.”
“I love you Gram.”
