the knack

Genius. Pure genius.

We have a man in our fellowship for whom that's really the only adequate description. He's amazing, the inventions he comes up with.

We've got a folding machine in our premises here, for instance, which he devised and made. Folding A4 sheets into A5-size leaflets. We use it all the time and it's the envy of other churches. Simple, effective, and hugely efficient in terms of the time that it saves.

When Les came up with the thing I told him he should patent it. He couldn't be bothered. I think he's maybe gone through the patenting process so many times in his life for all the inventions he's made that he simply got bored with it all. Patenting, I mean, not inventing.

He's always inventing. His mind is always at work, working things out, finding solutions, creating machines which will help folk address all their needs.

And yes, he's an engineer. He fixes things. He makes things work. That's what engineers do.

As the cartoon says - he has the knack!

Click on the picture below to see the classic Dilbert cartoon. Except I should say there's none of that 'social ineptitude' about Les! He's a wonderfully friendly man, at home in any company.

Les is up in his nineties now. But he's still got the knack. And he's still producing solutions.

His latest invention is the Geddes Glide Reader, "a high quality miniature camera on a stand which plugs into your television. It makes anything you put under the camera look much bigger on the screen."

It's simple, effective and cheap.

Relatively speaking, that is. Prior to Les' invention the nearest equivalent would have cost you some £3,000 (it still does, of course). Les' Geddes Glide Reader is sold for £65.

My maths isn't great but that sounds to me like it's not far short of 500 times cheaper!

He received a Chairman's Award last month from the Macular Disease Society, presented to him by Dennis Norton. And back in April he and his team of volunteers received an Inspiring Volunteers Award from the Edinburgh City Council. No wonder.

Now, of course, Les may be pure genius, but he's not just genius. He's got a heart of gold as well. A heart that was long ago touched and fired by the grace of God, and breathes the compassion of Christ.

He puts his genius at the service of the Lord. This latest invention of his was prompted by the needs of his wife as she struggled with Macular disease. He wanted to help, to find some way to make the hardships she was struggling with more bearable.

And then to help those countless other people who are facing that depressing deterioration in their sight. The cost is all in the parts. He and his team do all their work in putting the Reader together for nothing.

They care. It's as simple as that.

The guy reminds me of Caleb. A man of faith, a man of courage, a man of practical action.

"So here I am today, eighty five years old! I am still as strong today as the day Moses sent me out; I'm just as vigorous to go out to battle now as I was then. Now give me the hill country that the Lord promised me that day." [Josh.14.11f]

The man was always up for fresh challenges.

Well, Les is over 90 now; and he's still going strong. He's a man of devout faith, practical love, and infectious hope.

An example and inspiration to us all. A guy who really has the knack.