Wayne Weekly “Your Personal Product Guarantee…Where are You Registered?”

The microwave over our range decided the last wave had been radiated. It said good-bye without fanfare. I didn’t care all that much, except I don’t like things that don’t work. My wife Evie had stronger feelings about it than I did, so another one had to be purchased. I ordered it on-line and it was delivered right to my front door in three days. It would take twice that time for me to get around to install it.

If you’re familiar with over the range microwave ovens, you might hope to stick with the same manufacturer, crossing your fingers that they had not changed the configuration of the hanging brackets. If they kept the original design, it would save the consumer the job of securing a new bracket to the wall. Sounds simple enough, but there is measuring, and templates and drills….and TIME!! I don’t mind working with tools, but my time has become more valuable as the years progress.

Hoorah! Whirlpool kept the bracket configuration as it was 8 years ago. The new bracket was not as hefty, so I was glad to use the old one. Hanging the oven was pretty simple…especially with the help of my wife Evie. After resting the unit on the bracket and bolting it securely to the cabinet above and plugging it in…we were good to go. I was glad things went smoothly. Now we can eat radiated popcorn again, warm up cold pizza, and put my cup of room temperature coffee in for a charge.

I always register the products I buy. The paperwork says you don’t have to do that to keep the warranty in effect, but that’s hard to believe. So I fill in the form, usually online, letting the manufacturer know things about where the product was purchased, why I chose their brand (‘cause I didn’t want to install a new bracket…that’s why!), what my family income is, what I am going to purchase in the next year, and important things like that. At least I’ll get recall notices if they find a seal malfunction.

Now, things work a bit differently when it comes to our personal apparatus called the human body. We really don’t have a warranty or guarantee for the flesh and bones. If we’re here for the long run we just kind of wear out. If things go haywire, the normal life expectancy is prone to an early failure. No warranties or guarantees. Not even for 90 days. God allots to us just so long to operate, then it’s over. Yes, it may be we can short circuit and blow out early due to a lifestyle that puts us at risk, but overall, God does number our days on earth.

Our spirits, now that’s different. Our spirit is guaranteed to go on for eternity. A surefire extended contract for who and what we really are. We don’t have to register for existence, that’s automatic from eternity past in the mind of God. The part that we do need to be concerned about is, “where are we registered to spend eternity?” Our manufacture places us “in service”, but our eternal existence depends on one question on the registration card, have you been… “born again”?

“Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ ”        Jesus (John 3:7)