Fire

Every man or woman is given a skill.  A skill that is capable of turning into something masterful.  This skill requires building.  Building requires trial and error - much error.  We build on foundations that have come before us.  Some of us are musicians.  We are inspired by those that have laid a path - we emulate and originate.  We figure out what we love and what we despise.  We utilize fragments of sounds and create.  We build.  Others of us are poets.  Others of us are lawyers, doctors, engineers, teachers, social workers, athletes, etc.  We all build.

Every so often, our work is required to go through fire.  Fire in the very literal sense has 2 purposes - to either refine, or burn up.  Coming into contact with fire must not be avoided - because whether you like it or not, the fire will find you.  It will run after you.  All things that are built on the foundation that came before us demands fire.  I have found that the fire is the most painful and rewarding experience of my life.  When I come into contact with fire, I am forced to let go of all my preconceived notions, ideas, and assumptions.  When the fire finds me, the more I run, the more it engulfs me - into a maze that is truly inescapable.

When your work is put into the fire it never feels all that good.  This is a common misconception because most people assume their work will outlast the fire.  We have to be a people that are humble enough to allow things to burn up.  We cannot be so full of pride to assume that our work is flawless.  We cannot assume that what we have built is fireproof so to speak - tested and refined.  In the end, our work will show itself to be refined, or burned up.

What is the fire?  It comes in all forms.  It comes in the form of time, opinions, self-doubt, misery, rejection, questions, memories, poor decisions, external circumstances, lost love, and the list goes on.  The fire is anything that borderline kills you - that borderline makes you feel shattered and miserable.  The fire is not meant to harm you, but it sure feels like it.  When the fire comes, it is because you are loved by the Fire-Giver in a way that doesn't want you to waste time.  In a way that wants you to have eternal impact.  In a way that wants the things you build to come out better and more permanent.  When you are in touch with fire and are not burned up, you shall receive a reward.

Most of us build things without foundations in mind.  We make faulty assumptions about the foundation.  We would rather build our own foundation and be so original that we originally fail.  We want optimal results without being in touch with the foundation.  We build lavish palaces on quicksand.  We build amusement parks in the middle of the desert.  We build in vain.  The fire comes in to test all of this - not for the fire's sake - but for our sake.  When things become visible, the Fire-Giver wants us to know whether our buildings will last.  We are given second chances.  The sooner the fire tests us out, the better our chances are at creating something that will last.

Many of us are in the midst of the fiery furnace.  We are unsure if our creations are burned up, or still in the process of being tested.  We must be very careful not to give up assuming our work is burned up.  Wait until the fire has taken its course - THEN SEE WHAT IS LEFT.  THEN FIND OUT IF IT IS REFINED, OR IF IT NEEDS TO BE REBUILT.  Your fight has something to do with the refining of your product.  Your character has plenty to do with the fire.  Your inmost thoughts and heart have to engage with this fire.  Your desires can change the result of the fire.  It is not all left to the quality of what you built - it is also up to the quality of the builder.  Put yourself in the fire with what you built - don't be afraid - don't be a passive investor.  Rise with your ship or go down with it.

A friendly reminder on your journey - Don't play with fire.

Peace, and much love to you - Jeevo.