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Tinder |
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Tinder is generally unnoticed until it explodes into a wild fire that destroys acres of forest and numerous homes. Our hearts go out to the ones displaced by the fires in Bastrop, Texas, the ones who have lost valuable possessions and precious memories.
Emotional tinder which lay smoldering for 10 years since the terrorist attacks of 9/11, was bellowed again by talks of hijackings, crashes, deaths, and destruction. Our souls are touched not only by the sadness of those events but also by the hope and determination arising from the ashes.
As I listened to news reports of both events, it struck me that what I was hearing was stories of how people found changed meaning in the midst of horrors. As television cameras panned piles of ashes, homeless fire victims hugged those nearby and said, "...but I have my family." Many families who lost loved ones in the 9/11 attacks found meaning by reaching out to others in ways they had never dreamed before.
For many suffering the Texas fires and the 9/11 attacks, they found meaning in their faith. When before, religion was to be given an hour or so on Sunday morning, now religion is where people find a supportive community of faithful believers. When before, meaning was found in power, possessions, and property, now meaning is found through prayer. Life-changing events often become faith-changing events as we find changed meaning in our faith, which then brings us into a changed relationship with Christ. --by Jan |
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A New Name -- by Bill
During my family's reunion over Labor Day weekend, the conversation turned to my late uncle, Jim. One of my cousins knew that Uncle Jim's given name was neither James nor Jim. My grandparents named their first son Leland Arthur Howden. Somehow in childhood, he acquired the nickname "Jim." The name stuck, and as a young adult, Uncle Jim had his name legally changed to Leland James Howden. Throughout most of his life, he was known to one and all as Jim Howden.
"So," my cousin asked, "how did Uncle Jim get the nickname?" That's when things got interesting. I knew the answer. So did Uncle Jim's son, and one of the other cousins. Only problem was, none of the three answers matched!
With my father the only one of Jim's generation surviving, and his memories fading at the age of 93, Uncle Jim's name may remain an unsolved mystery.
Still, it is intriguing. In the version of the story I heard (from a grade-school classmate of my uncle's - so I still contend it's the authentic one!), the nickname began as a schoolyard taunt. The teacher was reading Huckleberry Finn to the class; one of the main characters in Twain's novel is a runaway black slave named Jim. My uncle, with his dark tan and close-cropped, curly black hair, was quickly dubbed Jim by his classmates. If the story is true, a nickname intended to be insulting became a name welcomed and claimed.
We can never escape our past, neither the blessings nor the wounds that come our way. But our past need not define us. Instead, we can define our past by how we respond to whatever happens. |
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Copyright (c) 2011 Soul Windows Ministries
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