"...my righteous one will live by faith. ...I
take no pleasure in the one who shrinks back. ...we are not those who shrink
back and are destroyed, but of those who believe and are saved."
Heb. 10: 38-39 (TNIV)
Heb. 10: 38-39 (TNIV)
Last week as I drove my little car around in the bitter cold, the
“check engine light” came on. Each time I ventured out, there that light was –
reminding me that something wasn’t quite right with the engine. I actually
didn’t need the light to tell me that. I could feel the hesitation as the
engine idled at red lights. Even so, my mechanical husband wasn’t overly
concerned – he’s been driving his pickup truck for almost two years with the
dash light on. Each day though, my little car was getting worse. When motoring
along, the engine felt rough - pistons were misfiring and everything was
getting out of sync. This past Sunday was the last straw. While returning home
- half way through an hour long drive - I was afraid that it was going to stall
out on me & I’d be stranded in the middle of nowhere along the highway.
Thankfully I got home safely and my passenger was none the wiser.
Next day, I took it to the shop. The mechanic completed a computer scan
of the entire electronic system but he couldn’t find anything wrong except that
there was a “faulty vacuum seal.”
To answer the question of where
the fault was and exactly why could prove to be a very expensive proposition.
After the mechanic and I discussed the probability that an "O" ring
had shrunk due to the extreme cold, I took a chance and drove it home.
Meanwhile, as the temperature moderated, the warning light went off
& it hasn’t come back since. Here’s to hoping that it won’t come back on
again as the thermometer plunges once again.
Now, you might be wondering what this little story about my car has to
do with the text from Hebrews that this post began with.
It all has to do with shrinking back. An "O" ring in my car
apparently shrunk back.
An “O” ring. A simple "O" ring. This reminds me of the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster
which occurred on January 28, 1986. The catastrophic problem there was with an
“O” ring that shrunk on that unseasonably cold morning in Florida.
When the “O” ring
shrank, it lost its flexibility. It became stiff and brittle. This created a
void - the vacuum was compromised and the whole system failed.
Allow me to share
a favorite quote:
(please note -
though often attributed to Nelson Mandela, he was quoting from Marianne
Williamson’s A Woman's Worth)
"Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our
deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our
darkness that most frightens us. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking
so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant
to shine, as children do. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously
give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own
fear, our presence automatically liberates others."
We are meant to shine and not to shrink. This was impressed upon me yet
again this morning, as I participated in the practice of Holy Yoga. In
community we shared the experience. I saw the light. I felt the warmth as my
body moved and breath and blood flowed into all the cold places of my heart. My
heart opened and expanded.
May it be so for you this day, dear friend.
"...anyone who is right with me thrives on loyal
trust; if he cuts and runs, I won't be very happy. ...we are not quitters who
lose out. Oh, no! We'll stay with it and survive, trusting all the way."
Heb. 10:38-39 (MSG)
Heb. 10:38-39 (MSG)
