Walk

I had a friend once . . . I think it was back in the 70's. Yeaahhh . That was a nice day .

The 70's were great weren't they ? Probably most of you don't remember them because you are too young or you were stoned through most of 'em . I don't remember much of them but I pin most of that on painting with industrial coatings for 20 years without wearing a mask . Warning labels schmorning labels . I do remember corduroy bell bottoms and long hair and rock music , none of which I was allowed to have . Danged  Baptists . I woulda made a great hippie .I did have one of those 'Keep on Truckin' t-shirts , the one with the guy taking the long step forward . It was sorta hippie-ish though I don't know why .

I went swimming in the summer with my friend back then , maybe 1978 , in a pond about the size of the parking lot of your local Dollar General . More of a pool of water . Not so big and sorta green , the kind of place they wont let you swim in now a days because you'll get some flesh eating amoeba . Where were flesh eating amoebas  back in the 70's ? And peanut allergies ? Did you ever meet someone with a peanut allergy in the 70"s ? I think as we've progressed  medically and are living longer God has had to find new ways to kill us off . It's a working theory . . . .

"Cannonball !" Is there any other way to get in a lake off a dock ? I feel as though if Joni Earekson had used this approach we'd a never heard of her . That feeling of flying through the air after a long run down the dock and you lift and you tuck and 'SPAAA . . . LOOSH'! Awesome . And you come up and yell 'yeah' and claim to have had the highest splash but really , how did we know ?  The surprise for me this day was how warm the water was . It was like when you pee in the pool and you feel the water turn warm around you and you'd never admit it to anyone but it kinda feels nice and it gross but you know it's true . Well when the whole pond is like that it's not so neat a feeling and almost a disappointment . In the middle of July escaping the heat was the goal , not being engulfed by it . But it was what we had and , you know, When in Rome . . .

I was in church last week and I was actually trackin' for once (re: paint fume comment above) . It was our 25th anniversary at the Vineyard and we sang some songs from a ways back , one of which was Lord Light The Fire Again and it really touched me . It reminded me of a better time , a time when I cared about God and what He thought and I actually did some of the stuff in the bible . At the end of the pastors speech his wife got up and asked if there were some who might need their fire lit again . Would you like to get some prayer . I said yes , I needed that and so I proceeded to . . . walk out the door and go to lunch .

I've been thinking about this this week . I talked to my wife . She said she wanted to go get prayer too but followed my lead out the door . It made me sad to hear this . We think our decision don't matter . . .  .  My thoughts brought me back to swimming in this pond of lukewarm water . Of how at my take off into the air I was bracing for cool relief on a summers day only to be disappointed by the warmth of stagnant water . I am stagnant water , lukewarm , a product of doing almost nothing . And mostly , not refreshing . In particular to my Dad . Woe is me and to all I meet . Well, that sounds kind of harsh but just think of how I could have refreshed those around me if I'd have been letting the cool water of the living God flow through me like I should have . Such a disappointment .

I should have walked . Walked forward with my leg stuck way out in front of me like the Keep on Truckin' guy . Big steps forward towards a refreshing and meaningful life for me and those I meet and touch. I hope I do . Big steps into the pool of living water . . . .