Outsmarted by a Vending Machine?

Alex my wife felt rather hungry, not having eaten for five or six hours. She asked me whether there is a vending machine in the vicinity. I answered that there is one at that particular corner, but when I arrived at the spot on the far side of the 'L' shaped room, the old machine had gone. Searching elsewhere, I found what appears to be a new installation at a nearby corridor, just out of my wife's view.

Just the sight of this high-tech snack dispenser has made my skin crawl a little. A reflection of our increasingly sophisticated society? Maybe so, maybe not, however, what I did notice for the first time ever, was that there is a debit card terminal built into the machine, along with coin slots and an array of push-buttons, or a typewriter-style keyboard, whatever it's referred as. Thinking that inserting my bank card into the slot and keying in the code number of the item chosen from the wide display behind the glass window, I would first type in the code, then the machine debits my card at the appropriate price. And so I thought.

Nothing happened, except that there was an electronic display of the price at a slot directly under the keypad. I managed to lift the lid located below the display window, but none of those coils, on which each item is suspended, made any effort to turn. Was my card debited? I don't know, but I decided to insert some coins instead - after removing the card from the terminal - and keyed in the code. 

Again some obscure message was displayed. I think it was reading, Continue Shopping. I was confused. All I wanted was one item, which was for Alex. I ended up gazing rather forlornly at the whole machine until another message appeared on the slot: Abandon Shopping? When I pressed the right button, some coins fell into the reject tray, which brought some relief, but nevertheless, I felt defeated by modern technology, but fortunately for me, with no-one near me to watch the whole episode, I was spared the embarrassment. I then apologised to Alex and with her kind response, answered, Don't worry about it.

Vending machines, of course, are nothing new to me. But my familiarity with them had always consisted of inserting the right coin(s) and out dropped the item. And that was it. And that applied to both food and drinks. And going back to the late sixties, how could I ever forget this particular vending outlet at college, where I had to attend on a weekly day-release scheme set by the Government at the time? It was a hot drinks dispenser, which I believe sold only tea. First thing in the morning, after nearly an hour's train travel into London, coupled with being squeezed into a packed Underground train, I made straight for that machine after entering the building.

On one occasion the plastic cup fell onto its side as it was automatically dropped from its holder. I felt a complete pillock as I watched the tea pouring over its side and into the drip-drain underneath it. On another occasion, I carefully drew the hot tea out of the dispenser, only to see a bluebottle floating dead on the surface. I had to chuck the whole thing out. But those were the days when vending machines were straightforward to use, even if a bug in the tea came, on one occasion, with the price.

Then again, there were other times when technology seems to run ahead of my capabilities. Topping up my mobile is one of them, at least occasionally. It is very fortunate that my regular cashpoint, at our local Sainsbury's superstore, has enough patience for me to hesitantly type in the eleven-digit number correctly, then to repeat the sequence for verification. No problem. Elsewhere I have been given a warning that my time is about to run out, then cuts short my transaction attempt when, out of panic, I tend to dither further.

I suppose these electronic dispensers and cashpoints are designed with the assumption that every individual who makes use of these machines must be rapid keyboard typists or graduates who know by heart how to decode the extreme complexity involved in buying a sandwich, a Mars bar or a packet of crisps. It is as if the food is some kind of reward one gets for solving a challenging problem, very like that of a dolphin receiving its food after performing an astounding act before an audience of onlookers, or that of a mouse finding its food after navigating a complex maze of transparent plastic tunnels. Indeed, so it looks to me, modern society is centred around the graduate.

Is life fair? Really, it looks to me that life is very unfair! For example, let's go back to that vending machine incident. Where about did this happen? Indeed, it was at the waiting room of Royal Berkshire Hospital A&E. But we were not waiting to be seen by the medic. Rather, we were waiting for a taxi to take us back home after my wife had suffered another episode of severe back pain and the resulting overdose of Oramorph. We called the ambulance, not so much for a backache as with the overdose, which requires her to be seen straight away. For her backache, we have medicine in place to meet the situation without the need for A&E. But an overdose is something quite different.

All this is quite contrary from my original perception of retirement. After working manually for nearly half a century after leaving school in 1968, I had hopes for full-time leisure - swimming, gym, sauna, day trips, holidays abroad, as well as, of course, church. Indeed, since my retirement commenced in 2015, all these were fulfilled, including two Eurostar trips to Paris. But at present, with my beloved confined to a wheelchair whenever she is outdoors, living on a knife-edge is certainly nerve-wracking. Like the time when we were extremely unfortunate enough for the elevator to break down in London at that moment when my wife just happens to be in it. The sudden jolt had jarred her back, the severe pain meant A&E instead of boarding the train home. After, the staff at nearby St. Thomas Hospital decided to keep her in overnight, resulting in further payment for an extra, unscheduled night spent alone at a hotel. 

And I wonder where God is in all this. How is it that of all married couples around us, we are one of a small minority to whom a wheelchair is needed? The worst thing about all this is Alex is considerably younger than I am. To see her like this is heartbreaking.

But I would never ever leave her! My love for her is strong, robust, and she loves me equally. I'm not exaggerating when she says that I am the best man she could have for a husband. And I always think of her whilst out on my own, whether it's on a quick trip to the shops, at the gym, sauna, or on a train trip to Reading or to London to visit a longstanding friend. And here is another setback. Her disability has put limits to her travel to the extent that she is restricted in using the London Underground, and I fear to take her back on Eurostar lest an episode overseas means treatment at a foreign hospital followed by a massive bill.

Damn! Damn! Damn! Why did we vote to leave the EU? Even if we as a couple voted to remain in the EU, we still lost the Referendum. Surely, that will put a real stickler on international travel, wouldn't it, especially to European countries, unless our Government can knock together a deal in time with the EU which would give us ease of access. 

But whether remaining in the EU or leaving, my wife's disability will always restrict travel, maybe for the rest of our lives. Nevertheless, I will, as I always have, acknowledge God in all things, especially the good. As in last week's blog which was about hiking the Grand Canyon, I can say with conviction that I wouldn't have been able to make such a trip without God's sovereign help. The same applies to all travel, whether it was to France, Germany, Italy, Greece, Spain, Israel, Singapore, Australia, Canada and the USA. All these I have recognised as being a rich blessing from God. And now, I see our marriage as a wonderful blessing from God, and I am and will be, always thankful to him.

Our 16th Wedding Anniversary, Bournemouth 2015.

It is too easy, too tempting to moan about my fate under such a burden of my wife's disability. The anxiety on when she would have another attack is always at the forefront of my mind. Yet by going through such an experience, there is something worth learning. And that is having a responsibility - a very special sense of responsibility. And I believe that this responsibility itself comes from God. That is why I so fervently believe in daily Bible reading, usually in the morning before getting up, this being the powerhouse upon which our marriage not only survives despite illness but thrives.

True enough, to read the Bible on a daily basis is a learnt habit. It did not come naturally at first after conversion. One of the reasons being, that I might have found something in Holy Scripture which contradicts my cherished beliefs. For example, believing in Once Saved Always Saved and then reading Hebrews 6:4-6. Rather than putting the Bible down and walking away in discouragement, instead I kept it open in my hands with the determination that somehow I would solve the apparent contradiction. And eventually, this has paid off. A thorough reading of the Bible over time has led me to discover that Hebrews 6:4-6 isn't about a Christian falling into apostasy. As this is a letter written for Jews at the time of the Temple offerings still being made, therefore the author is warning them not to reject the offer of salvation from the risen Lord Jesus in favour of maintaining Temple sacrifices.

I suppose the confusion comes from the phrase made partakers of the Holy Ghost found in verse 4. Does this indicate a fully committed, regenerated Christian falling into apostasy? Or, as I believe through means of studying the rest of the Bible, that it indicates a curious unbeliever who spends some time fellowshipping with true believers and enjoying all its benefits, but at the end of the day, decides that this Jesus of Nazareth is just an insignificant imposter, and being a Jew, returns to the Temple? 

After all, the letter is addressed to the Hebrews (indicating all Jews rather than just Jewish believers). The theme of the letter is about how the Temple and all the ordinances connected with it was to lead to Christ, his death, burial and resurrection, and having fulfilled the Law of Moses, therefore making the Temple obsolete. If someone rejects Jesus as Saviour, then there are no more sacrifices that can be made to atone for him short of the need for Jesus Christ to be crucified all over again.

I have a book by Philip Bell, an ardent Creationist, which is titled Evolution and the Christian Faith. In it, he gives the sad testimony of Charles Templeton, a one-time fervent American evangelist who was known to win many to Christ among massive revival audiences. Eventually, he himself had departed from the faith. In 1996 he wrote Farewell to God: My Reasons for Rejecting the Christian Faith, just five years before his death in 2001.

As one who believes in Once Saved Always Saved, this presents a dilemma. Any Arminian Christian would hold Templeton as a classic example that salvation can be lost by the believer. But reading other portions of the Bible, during the Judgement, we read of Jesus saying, I never knew you, depart from me ye that work iniquity (Matthew 7:23). If the Holy Spirit has actually used Charles Templeton to bring others to Christ for salvation, then how can I be sure that Jesus would actually say, I never knew you when actually, he did? Didn't Jesus himself say that the Holy Spirit will abide with and in you forever? (John 14:16-17).

I guess that such what looks to be a contradiction can boil down to our natural inability to accept that God can, and does, admit someone such as Templeton into Heaven. Many who share my Eternal Security truth would say that Templeton was never saved in the first place. I think that is nonsense! Rather, for such a former evangelist to enter Heaven would be a shock to his system and will demonstrate the very glory of God in showing mercy to such a one swallowed by intellectual deception.

But what I find interesting is what was the cause of Templeton's apostasy? It was his belief in Theistic Evolution! If ever there was such a force that turn Christian people into atheists and shut the minds of everyone else from the truth of the Gospel, it is Darwinism, whether theistic or not. And lately, I have read about a terrible shocker. So shocking this was and such a tearjerker, that it has an ongoing effect on my emotions.

It's about atheist Richard Dawkins' intention to write a children's book with the purpose of putting young children from any belief in God and direct their innocent young minds on Evolution, ensuring that any religious account of Supernatural Creationism is to be confined to myth and fairy tales.

God help me! Heaven help them! The very thought of a toddler being fed such intellectual poison is a heart-rending proposition. Yet we tend to forget that something very similar has been happening in Islamic, Hindu, Buddhist and animistic countries for centuries. Newborn babies grow up in an environment where they never hear the Gospel of Christ, the only way to Heaven. Personally, I find all this heart-rending yet I feel totally powerless to do anything about it.

Meanwhile, popular presenters such as David Attenborough, Brian Cox, and Andrew Marr, all committed Evolutionists, continue to push their beliefs through television, especially the BBC. And the average man in the street absorbs all that is presented, perhaps without realising that all this stuff in the name of Science has stripped the Bible of any historicity, authority and credibility. However, such a denial of Holy Scripture is settled in his subconscious, a barrier between himself and the Gospel.

Evolutionist Prof. Brian Cox visiting the Grand Canyon.

I may not get to grips with the up-to-date vending machine. I may find a dead housefly floating in my tea or coffee. I could dither in panic while trying to key in my mobile phone number at a cashpoint. But neither of these indicates a deprivation of wisdom. Because the firm foundation of wisdom is to know God through faith in Jesus Christ and to be thoroughly stuck into the Word of God, the Holy Bible. There is nothing to lose by making a daily reading of the Bible as natural as eating and sleeping.