Words of Fire Blog

Wednesday's Word: Alive!

8/22/2012

"Life and death are felt as a single respiration--the ebb and flow of a single tide. Death is not an invasion of an alien principle, it is not an attack upon life by an enemy. No! Life and death are identical twins."
Howard Thurman

I am learning to be amazed by the simple pleasures I find in each new day--whether I find gentle rain or piercing sun; whether I see looming clouds or clear blue skies.

I have found that I have spent too much time waiting for what may or may not come--what may or may not materialize. Life, I am learning, is meant to be met with gratitude, wonder, joy and a bit of abandon. Yet we spend our lives cautiously waiting for the sun to shine. We spurn the rain. We seek gentle breezes and reject heavy winds. We don't live, we survive. We are barely breathing. To again quote Thurman, we must move "beyond the dimension that saves the individual life from being swallowed by the tyranny of present needs, present hungers, and present threats." Life fully and deeply experienced is "to live the quality of the beyond."

Saint Irenaeus, the fourth century bishop of Lyons, declared that the glory of God was man fully alive. I want to show His glory. I want to be fully alive, until my last breath here and my next one in His presence.

Wednesday's Word: Single Sailing

6/20/2012

Cruise ships are full of activity: meet the Shrek family for breakfast. Learn how to Samba after lunch. Play bingo before dinner. Smoke cigars.  Dance to Michael Jackson tunes after the midnight buffet.  Shop. Play cards. Join a tournament.  Learn how to mix drinks.  Watch a movie. Climb a rock wall.  Get the picture?

What surprised me about this cruise was the “single and solo travelers'” get together.   There was one scheduled each day of my 7 day experience.  The place? The bar. Single travelers can’t meet, it seems,
unless they are in a place that serves massive quantities of alcohol. There was no similar gathering for women, the military or hot sauce aficionados. The meetings did not take place in the gym, the theatre or one of the ship’s numerous restaurants.  The singles met in the bar.

I did not join the party.  I felt too much like a closet anthropologist, watching a species’ habits in order to report on them later.

What do cruise ships, churches, and your maternal grandmother think that all singles want? They all assume that we want to meet other singles—ultimately, so that we won’t remain single. There must be more to the single life than trying to get out of it.

Jesus tells us to come to Him when we are feeling lonely, disconnected and burdened. He promises us that we will find what we need in Him. We won’t get a hook up, but we will learn about ourselves when we seek Him.

Singles, it seems to me, need to feel connected to someone, to something greater, in order to feel alive and valued. We run the risk of being self absorbed and selfish in our interests, in the allocation of our talents, in the use of our gifts and our time.  The world desperately needs committed singles. Those of us who do not have children have an almost unlimited amount of time to devote to our soup kitchens, our prisons, our hospitals, our nursing homes.  We can reach out to the lonely, the left out and the lost.

Our churches (and our cruise lines) have the right idea about connecting us, but not just to bars.  We need to connect to our destiny--and what a glorious adventure that will be.

Bon voyage!

Wednesday's Word: Hope

6/13/2012

"Without warning, a furious storm came up on the lake,
so the waves  swept over the boat.” Matthew 8:24

Today has turned out to be incredible. It began with strong winds and dark clouds. Now the sky is full of low hanging white cotton balls; azure blue waters roll by in seamless harmony. I just want to sit and take it all in: Gaze at the sky. Be mesmerized by the clouds. Hear God’s whisper along the wings of
the wind.

Don’t many of our days begin with calm and end in chaos?  We are on blue waters that suddenly threaten to engulf us—with no warning, with no chance of escape, with no life guards on duty.

That’s exactly what happened to the disciples. There was no warning. All of a sudden, the water that they trusted became the death that they feared. Worse still, Jesus was sleeping—seemingly unconcerned with their plight.

What do you do when the day has turned from sunny to stormy? From warm into wild?  I must confess that I am all too often like the disciples, who immediately entered panic mode. I believe that God has forgotten me; abandoned me; left me to perish in the storm of sickness, the squall of failure, the tempest of broken dreams and lost loves. We find ourselves drowning in the fierce waters of depression, despair and desolation. We don’t think that we can be saved.

But the story tells us otherwise. It is precisely when we are afraid that the water to be stronger than our faith that Jesus walks towards us--holding out His hand, offering us His help.  He is ever near us to save us.  He will not let the waters overtake us.

How can I be sure of this? Do I dare believe? His story tells that I can be sure, that I can believe, and that He will save me.

Tell the story: You will be giving hope. Tell the story: You will be offering a life preserver to a drowning soul.

Wednesday's Word: Encouragement

5/30/2012

“Speak a word, that we may live”
            Greeting, Desert Fathers and Mothers

I sat in the oncologist’s office as she received the report. First, there would be chemotherapy. Surgery would follow. Then, daily radiation treatments for six weeks. Still, the cancer returned.

My godmother was now hearing words like “inoperable.” She had decided, before the oncologist’s somber pronouncement, that she would be taking a cruise with a friend. Together they would sail over blue waters, to exotic locations and eat scrumptious meals.   Her health and spirits were rather high, so she wanted to enjoy her good health as long as it lasted.

My godsister was thinking the same thing. So, she planned to give her a surprise—us! We booked the cruise, arranged our travel—but without her knowledge. Our little surprise eventually became a big one: and two turned to four, and four turned to fifteen—all with the express purpose of celebrating the life and strength of someone we love and admire.

As I write this post overlooking the incredible Caribbean ocean, a woman on a balcony near mine is sobbing (loudly) about her wedding and the debts she’s incurred on this trip. “My wedding was crap!" she screamed. "My reception was crap!”

I so wanted to tell her about my godmother’s story; about how short life really is; about how precious each day has become. I’m sorry her wedding was “crap” but from where I sit, life is looking pretty good.  I have had a wonderful time filled with laughter and good friends. I have had an opportunity to show people how precious they are.  To top this all off, every meal has been provided with painstaking attention to detail.  The sunshine, liquid or otherwise, has been abundant. Over 2000 crew members work diligently to make sure that my every need is met.   Luxury is all around me—I refuse to act the beggar. Chemotherapy? Yes. Radiation? Unfortunately.

Life? Only today is promised.  I plan to live it on whatever balcony God places me, determined to enjoy the view with those I love.

Speak a word today—encourage someone else that life is precious and that it's worth living.  Encourage someone to enjoy God's abundant and extravagant love.  Speak a word of encouragement today--give life.

Wednesday's Word: Alive!

Wednesday's Word: Single Sailing

Wednesday's Word: Hope

Wednesday's Word: Encouragement

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