The nightmare all begin when the gas company offered to change out our gas meter … for free. Everyone likes something free, so we readily agreed. 

What we didn’t know was that the gas meter man would do a quick inspection of our basement – and red tag our water heater! This meant that within the next 40 days, we had to either fix the identified problem with the water heater or our gas service would be shut off! 

Now our water heater sits in an unfinished part of our basement, close to the washer and the dryer. Clear across the basement, a good 10 meters away, there sits a random shower. No, there isn’t any bathroom surrounding it. Just a simple shower! 

We have no idea why that shower is there, as we’ve only lived in the house for 5 years and it was already there when we moved in. We also didn’t know that it was against regulations to have a water heater that was not vented to the outside installed in a bathroom. Hey! We didn’t even know our water heater wasn’t vented to the outside! Had we known, however, we wouldn’t have been worried. After all, that random shower on the opposite of the basement was certainly not a “bathroom”! 

In the eyes of the serviceman, however, it was, and we were given four options. We could build a wall either around the water heater or the shower; we could remove the shower; we could vent our existing water heater to the outside; or we could buy a new water heater, one that was vented to the outside. Since our current appliance was over 10 years old, we proceeded to have a new tankless water heater installed to resolve the problem. 

Thankfully, this removed our safety violation and ensured we wouldn’t have our gas shut off. Imagine our discouragement, however, when the new system didn’t work. Oh, it worked. Sometimes. But only if the water was turned on first in the basement. Otherwise the machine remained dormant and refused to heat water. 

This was a real puzzle to the poor plumber who had arranged to have this new system installed, and he dutifully sent over one of his plumbers to see if they could figure it all out. It only took this plumber a few minutes to isolate the problem. The water heater would only work if the basement light was turned on. 

Remember that we thought it would only work if the basement tap was on… Well we would have had to turn on the light to open the basement tap! And since we would have turned off the light when we left the room, the rest of the taps in the house would be without hot water until such a time as the basement light would again be turned on! When the original plumber put in the new electrical outlet for the water heater, he ran it to an existing outlet, one that only works on the light switch! We didn’t have a problem with the water heater! We had an electrical problem!

A short extension cord later, and the water heater was plugged into a different, dedicated outlet. Our problem was resolved. 

When I was young, I used to belong to a very legalistic church, one that professed having their own prophet. In case of any confusion with something written in the Bible, the writings of this prophet were consulted, and the prophet’s interpretation was taken as gospel truth. As a result, I found myself leaning heavily upon the church’s prophet in order to understand the Bible. Is anyone surprised when I say that to me the Bible was pretty disjointed? Sometimes it seemed to hit the nail right on the head, so to speak; but other times I would put away my Bible feeling very confused. I was like that water heat that only worked part of the time!

When God brought me out of this church, He began helping me to establish a personal relationship with Him. He filled me with His Holy Spirit, and suddenly the Bible came alive. I didn’t need to filter it through a prophet… God Himself interpreted it for me! Suddenly the Bible was my inspiration … ALL the time! And why not? After all: “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness…” (2 Timothy 3:16 NIV)

Just like the water heater needed to have a direct electrical connection to the power supply of the house, I needed to have a direct spiritual connection with my Power Supply! God Himself! I didn’t need to go through my pastor, and I certainly didn’t need to go through my church’s prophet! God is, after all, the author of the Bible! Why not turn to Him to interpret it? 

This doesn’t mean you shouldn’t ask questions when you don’t understand something. What it does mean is that in addition to getting information from your pastors and teachers, you also need a personalrelationship with Jesus Christ! He will confirm for you if the answer you are given is correct and how it applies to your life!

Remember that having a relationship with us is what God longs to do. He says: “Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.” (Rev. 3:20 NIV)!

What about you? Does the Bible leave you scratching your head in confusion? Why not ensure that you are directly connected to its Author! Spend time working on a personal, direct relationship with God. Invite His Spirit to help you understand every time you open His Word. You will be amazed at how God will open your mind and reveal Truth … When we are directly connected to Him!

Inspired by Rob Chaffart
Founder, Answers2Prayer Ministries