If you play with fire, you’re going to get burned. We’ve heard this phrase a thousand times, as our society teaches us to avoid the pain. Our ads give us the false idea of escapism, our conversations hide the truth, and our dreams always point to a shallow, unrealistic paradise. In essence, we rely on our own effort and do everything we can to not be burned. Self-help pop psychology allows us to approach the fire of life, and we weakly reach out our cold hands to warm ourselves. But, look at our feet! We are positioned to stand where we don’t get too close. Our distance from the heat is a reminder for how we isolate ourselves from life-giving community, and instead dwell in the coldness of our loneliness.
We are invited to a life that has no fear of fire, for we rest in the paradox of being refined by the flames, yet not being burned; where the warm hands of a Savior hold ours. We have inside us a gift which is a burning heart, and an understanding that what leads and heals us is stronger than any hell.