That fire engine is like my guardian angel, who is there to keep me safe along the journey.
I have always enjoyed watching fireworks live…
When I was a very little girl – because people were not really very safe back in those days – my father and uncles used to set off fireworks in our street each year on important occasions like Australia Day and New Year’s Day and even on special birthdays.
As a very young child I was taught to stand well back from the fireworks with my mother and all the other children and ladies while the men had some fun playing with explosives and fire and setting off the fireworks…
As the legislation changed and the attitudes of people changed over the years – to make it less acceptable to take the sort of risks that are involved with detonating fireworks without appropriate licences and training – we no longer detonated fireworks at home. However, I have continued to love the adventure of watching a live fireworks display…
On New Year’s Eve this year, my family and I were away from home and were lucky enough to observe a live display of fireworks that would not have been possible for us among the crowds in Sydney. And as we were watching the firework display that had been prepared for our enjoyment to welcome in the new year, it occurred to me that this display was not very dissimilar to my earthly life.
You see, in order to prepare the firework display there was much planning. The display itself was planned so that it would be aesthetically pleasing and the launch position was planned to minimise the risk to the observers and there was a fire truck present in case of an accident or emergency.
And I have been reflecting on that today, because it reminds me so much of my earthly life.
You see, my entire life – my existence – was thought out by God in minute detail. God knew me for the whole of eternity. That really means that when He was creating the land and the sea and all the creatures in it – when He was creating Adam and then Eve – He KNEW me. He knew how I would be and who I would be. He knew my name and temperament. He knew my habits and vices. And He loved me – even then before I was even born. And that is just like the preparation for the fireworks. Before I even decided to attend the event, there were plans in place to keep me safe…
And there is more to it than that… For there was that fire engine. And that fire engine is like my guardian angel, who is there to keep me safe along the journey.
And then there are the fireworks themselves. The beautiful flashes of light that appear in the midnight sky for an instant to disappear in a blink as more and more and more fireworks shoot through their colourful display. And those fireworks are like my earthly life – over in a moment – only a blink of time in the scheme of eternity, but beautiful while they are here and then absorbed into the sky beyond all the light that can be seen, just as my immortal soul will live forever after my earthly life is done…
And I have been thinking of that and giving thanks as I have been remembering those fireworks. For I am the child of a God who looks after me and loves me beyond my comprehension, and I cannot help but feel grateful for that!
For with prayer, I stand on Holy Ground where everything is clear. Here. At the Foot of the Cross.
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