Inspirations - Smoke Signals

Hi there, it’s me again. I’m glad you stopped by today, because I have something that I want to share with you. Every now and then, I go surfing around the ‘net, looking for inspirational stories, or just ideas for things I can talk about on my blog. I found a good one the other day, take a look.

“The only survivor of a shipwreck was washed up on a small, uninhabited island. He prayed feverishly for God to rescue him, and every day he scanned the horizon for help, but none seemed forthcoming. Exhausted, he eventually managed to build a little hut out of driftwood to protect him from the elements, and to store his few possessions. But then one day, after scavenging for food, he arrived home to find his little hut in flames, the smoke rolling up to the sky. The worst had happened; everything was lost. He was stunned with grief and anger. "God, how could you do this to me!" he cried. Early the next day, however, he was awakened by the sound of a ship that was approaching the island. It had come to rescue him. "How did you know I was here?" asked the weary man of his rescuers. "We saw your smoke signal," they replied.”

I can definitely relate to that. My hut burned completely to the ground recently. I just hope someone saw the smoke!

Naturally, I get frustrated sometimes, wondering why God would allow my hut to catch fire. At first I was devastated because it seemed like everything I owned was in that hut. After awhile, however, I began to realize that not all of my things were in there, some of them were hidden in the jungle, nearly forgotten. In fact, I didn’t even know some of them were there. I did lose some of my stuff, though. Luckily, I have the greatest insurance agent in the universe! I admit, He can be harsh sometimes, deciding how valuable my possessions were, and which ones are worth replacing, but I’ve heard rumors that He can also be very generous, replacing the old useless things with brand new ones that are even better. It's almost like Christmas, waiting to see all the nice new things He wants to give me.

Okay, enough with the metaphors. Seriously, God puts us through some rough situations, and it’s hard to keep our eyes on the big picture. The big picture, of course, is God! As long as we keep our eyes on God, and trust Him, He will take care of us, no matter what trials and tribulations we are facing. Sometimes that means getting rid of the old junk we carry around with us, and replacing it with new, more useful stuff.

Incidentally, that story reminded me of one that Pastor Mike told us during his sermon one Sunday. It went something like this:

“A man had been shipwrecked on a deserted island for many months, when finally he was rescued. When the rescuers found the man, they discovered that he had been quite industrious.
“Wow, said one rescuer, you built three huts! What’s that one fore?” he asked, pointing to the first hut.
“That’s where I live.” Said the castaway.
“And what’s that one for?” asked another rescuer.
“That’s where I go to church.” Said the man.
“And what’s that third one for? Asked the first rescuer.
“That’s where I used to go to church.” He replied.”

I can’t remember exactly what Pastor Mike’s point was; I think it was something about commitment. How we always find it easier to find something new, rather than sticking with our old stuff and trying to fix it. It’s a good point, our society has become so disposable.

Well, that’s it. I’m going to go looking for more blog material. Thanks for listening.

2 Corinthians 4: 16-18 For which cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day. For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory; While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.

Philippians 3:7-9 But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ. Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ, And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith.

Drums in the Deep

Hello, and welcome! If you’ve been here before I’m very glad to have you back. If this is your first visit, what took you so long? J

Before I get too far into my story I thought I would take a few moments to explain the title of my blog; “Drums In The Deep”.

Some of you may recognize the phrase. That’s right, I borrowed it from J. R. R. Tolkien’s “Lord of the Rings”. More specifically, it comes from the first book of the trilogy “The Fellowship of the Ring”.

If you’ve never read these books (and shame on you if you haven’t) I’ll give a brief synopsis:

On their journey to Mordor, Gandalf and the rest of the fellowship have been forced to travel through the mines of Moria; a network of tunnels and caverns that were excavated through the mountains by the dwarves. Instead of the warm welcome they expected from the dwarves, they find the mines deserted. Or so they think. Soon they begin to hear drums echoing up from the deep places inside the mountain. “Doom, doom, doom” sound the drums in the deep.

Following the echoing drums, the evil Orcs start boiling up from everywhere.

During the climax of the battle Gandalf blocks the pursuing Orcs, but in the process falls into a bottomless pit. It seems that the drums in the deep do indeed spell certain doom for Gandalf the Gray.

However…

We find out later that Gandalf was not lost. Gandalf the Gray fell into the pit, but he conquered the enemy and was reborn as Gandalf the White, brighter and more powerful than before (does this story remind you of anything?)

He conquered the enemy and was reforged! Pretty amazing huh?

Well that’s why I chose the title “Drums In the Deep”. I have passed through trials and tribulation and have emerged, not broken, but stronger than before. You see, the drums don’t have to be a herald of doom, they can be a harbinger of positive changes in our lives. It’s really up to each of us.

For Gandalf, the reforging process happens kind of quickly; maybe because he was a great wizard. For us lesser mortals, though, the process sometimes takes a bit longer. For me, the process has already lasted several years and is still ongoing. The important thing for me to remember is that it is happening! And as long as I don’t give up, the positive changes will continue until I have been reborn.

Can you see where this is going yet? Yup, I’m talking about God. I hope that doesn’t scare too many of you away.

God has spent a lot of time and effort trying to get my attention. That makes me feel pretty special because I know God has a lot to do. But really He spends a lot of time on ALL of us and that’s the first thing I want you to remember. God loves ALL of us! It doesn’t matter who you are, where you’re from, or what kind of family you have. He loves YOU! He’s trying to talk to you right now, are you listening?

Well anyway, that’s what Drums In The Deep is all about. Hope that made sense. )
That’s it for today. I hope you’ll read on because I have tons more stuff to unload on you…OOPS, I mean SHARE with you! :-)

See you next time!
Steven