Encouraging Signs

From the sounds of things in the news the world is spinning wildly out of control. From $4+ gasoline in the U.S. to unmanagable weather shifts, this ball of mud we call home is falling apart. But the world I live in has so many more positive things happening than negative ones. Oh sure, there is a constant ebb and flow in the lives of the men and women who inhabit this earth, the economy is hurting and the weather changes, but in the daily scheme of things, life is GRAND.

I am blessed to be able to spend time with Christians who truly love each other and the God they serve. They laugh together, cry together and simply accept each other for who they are...people with a common purpose and a united destination. They have experienced major strokes, cancer, death of parents, siblings, children and spouses, but still they live with a hope that outstrips the worst that life can throw at them.

I am also blessed to be able to minister to some men and women who have chosen as their avocation the task of firefighting. They willingly place their own lives in danger so that others can live. These guys and gals, some of whom are devout belivers and others who don't know how to spell God unless it's used with damn attached, live to serve. They also experience life's worst with job layoffs, disease, injury, death and destruction. In fact, those things are part of what they see every day. But still they go on...they continue to beat back the defeatist attitude of the world around us and carry out their chosen duties to the best of their ability.

The Christians live with hope in their hearts...firefighters hope to live. Either way, these people are happiest when they are serving others side by side...and serve they do.

In both realms I am encouraged for the continued existence of the world. Because they live to serve, these men and women make the lives of others more enjoyable...more liveable.