Safety First...or not

I've been inundated with safety messages lately. Or maybe always, and I've just noticed lately. Not that there's anything wrong with taking precautions. I'm all for car seats, helmets, login passwords, and vaccinations, but I wonder whether we've become a little too obsessed with it. Do we spend a little too much time, effort, and money on disinfecting everything we touch (and then ourselves), making our house an impenetrable fortress, researching every possible recall, and cushioning our falls. Every other night, it seems, the special report on the nightly news reveals yet another lurking danger in our lives. "You thought your home was child friendly, but is it really a death trap? Tonight, in a report you can't afford to miss: 100 ways your home is killing your family."

So a few days ago I'm jogging while listening to the music mix my sister made me, and along come Garth Brooks's song, "Standing Outside the Fire." For those of you not from Oklahoma, the lyrics include:

we call them weak
who are unable to resist
the slightest chance love might exist
and for that forsake it all



they're so hell bent on giving, walking a wire
convinced it's not living if you stand outside the fire

standing outside the fire
standing outside the fire
life is not tried it is merely survived
if you're standing outside the fire

And it strikes me, I don't want to stand outside the fire. I want to jump into the fire, to look for love in the least likely places.

Our family has discovered our own passion, a place where we're willing to risk some safety and comfort for the possibility of greater community. Our own way of standing within the flames. I was second guessing myself when Garth reminded me that it's worth it.

In fact, if there's not at least one place in your life where you're wading into the fire, what's the point? When I read the stories of the great heroes of the faith, never do I hear God say to them, while calling them to a mission, "Remember, safety first. If it looks dangerous, or uncomfortable, or personally unfulfilling, or if success isn't guaranteed, just come on back and we'll call it quits."

Quite the opposite, actually. Usually, God's knowingly sends them into the fire. When they dare to whine, God replies with something like, "Yeah, I know it's hot. What's your point?"

So, here's to running into the fire, without a helmet or even a safety net. It's so worth it, burns and all.