Taking stock... ah, January

It's that time of year for keeping the shop open while we count everything, every book, every mezuzah, every prayer shawl, every candle... so that we can adjust our records to what is accurate and we can order what we need to re-stock. And all across the country, there are stock-take sales; I guess folks would rather sell items for a discount, than count those same items. And that makes sense to me in a way. It's all about saving time. 

We have 800 products in our little shop and they are diminished as a result of the end-of-year sales, and people who bought goods to give for Hanukkah or Christmas, or just to restock their anointing oils or CD collection. 

Stock. Goods. Inventory. I like taking stock. Not only here at the bookshop but also in life.  Lately, I've been making lists, all kinds of lists: gratitude lists, to-do lists, wish lists... you know, the kind of stuff that New Year's Resolutions are made of. But those aren't quite enough. I'm taking stock of my person. I'm evaluating what makes me to be me. My lists include what bothers me, and who bothers me. It includes what I could have done to prevent that bother. This inventory demands thoroughness; it demands honesty. That is much the same as stocktaking in the shop.

You see, the records have to be accurate. Accurate records allow us to know what we have on the shelves and what we don't have. It allows us to order more goods to re-stock the shelves and supply what is needed for our future customers. In the same way, unless I honestly evaluate what's going on in my mind, in my heart, in my spirit-- I'll never have the needed supply for others, for my family, for my neighbors, for the rest of my sphere of influence.

To be accurate, I have to take my time. I have to take honest stock. This is not a rush job. When that person offended me or disappointed me, what was the cause of that offense or resentment?  And then how did that affect me?  This is a process. And it takes more time. So I'm not in a hurry, but I want to get through this process. Maybe the most important section of this inventory is the item "Where was I wrong?" More and more I'm coming to understand that most of the time my errors in judgment and in life have to do with my thinking I deserve stuff; I deserve kindness; I deserve love; I deserve. 

Of course, deservedness or entitlement won't help anyone in this listing of mine. It certainly won't help me. But knowing what my list defines will help me to amend things. I can change. I can take stock, not to preserve stock, but to amend my thinking, amend my (lack of) cares, and make 2019 a new year. 

Some items don't need to be restocked. You know, things you used to carry in the shop that have gone past their use-by or interest dates. In the same way, there are things you want to remove from your life. Stocktaking is the way to oversee your own personal inventory. I'm working on this removing of wrong inventory just now. Maybe you are also.

But wait, the term I want to get to is the one called "goods." Wiki tells me "In economics, goods are materials that satisfy human wants and provide utility, for example, to a consumer making a purchase of a satisfying product. ... A good may be a consumable item that is useful to people but scarce in relation to its demand so that human effort is required to obtain it." Think of shopping for goods at the grocery store. All the products for which you have to pay are 'goods.'

I like that. Goods sounds like a good word. When I take stock of my life, I should not only find the items to change, but also the stock that I want to keep. I need to find the goods. That is, the good stuff. The things that God has already been working on, and amending. The things that I can be dignified about. The things that make God smile. And my wife to smile. And my kids and grandsons. Those are goods. And that should also be inventoried.

God is the Creator and He continues to invest Himself in our lives and in the life of the planet. He takes stock. In the book of the Revelation, Yeshua says, ""I am he who searches mind and heart, and I will give to each of you as your works deserve." (2.23)

The Lord invites us through King David to take stock in Psalm 139, "Search me, O God, and know my heart; Try me and know my anxious thoughts; And see if there be any hurtful way in me, and lead me in the everlasting way." (verses 23-24)

I invite you to join me in this searching and honest inventory. 

I invite you to join the Lord in searching you out, and in your searching Him out. 

Oh, and come by our Bondi Junction bookshop, and we'll see if there's any chance of a discount. But only before we count the stocked items. 

Have a great 2019!

New tolls

Sydney and the Toll Booth

Is it me or does the toll increase every 1 January around here? When most people are out having a good time on New Year's Eve on Sydney Harbour, the state government wants to remind everyone that our money is like the beer we drink at the pub. It's only ours for a short time. Some describe it as 'on loan.' We have it for now, but it will leave us very soon. Same with our funds in our wallets. The government will have it soon enough, thank you very much.

Take the increase in the tolls. Every three months the rates can rise. They could fall. (Someone wake me up-- I was dreaming for a moment) According to the law, the rates are fixed to the CPI the Consumer Price Index.

For instance, officially, the CPI has risen 36.5 per cent in the past 10 years, but tolls on motorways have gone up by between 52 and 100 per cent during the same period. I was a mathematics teacher in my 20s, and even though the governments of the world have brought in new maths, and every student has iPods, iPhones, and computers to help gather google information, 52-100 is still much larger than 36.5. Know what I mean? So who is kidding whom?

I'm a missionary now, and yet I run a book shop, albeit non-profit in Bondi Junction for seekers and the informed. We have nearly 500 products available and we do all right. If we were not doing all right, I'd ponder, "How do I get more customers?" or "How do I attract more money/ capital for the mission?" Sensible? Sure. Maybe that's what the state government is thinking. But are they....really?

When a store like Myer or David Jones is trying to get more capital, what do they do? They have a sale! They actually discount items to attract more (long-ranged) customers and keep the loyal ones inside. Aha! Such an old idea, you would think the government would have sorted this one out long ago. But no, they tax, and punish, rather than discount. Let me explain.

It makes sense to me that when the government is trying to increase its net worth that it should actually discount the toll, drop the fees, as a means of increasing loyalty and ridership, not for a month, much like a drug dealer would hand out free drugs to get people hooked, but forever. When the Cross City Tunnel was going belly-up and needed such a bailout, the government tried this freebie, but only for a very short term. Leave the costs down. Increase ridership. Get the people using these already paid-for roads!

As it is, now that the tolls will increase again on the Lane Cove Tunnel, on the Eastern Distributor and no doubt other crossings, the government is actually punishing the very people who have been paying for this service already. Don't punish the users; bring in more users! Sensible? I think so.

Who is with me?