Tuesday, August 9, 2011

Sittin' On the Fence Post, Chewin' my Bubble Gum...

"Doo Wop, Doo Wop!  And along came HERMAN THE WORM!"

Do you remember that silly song from your elementary school days?  It was always fun to sing that song with my friends while we were playing outside on the playground at school.  When we would say "Herman the worm" it was always with a funny voice. We'd say it with our tongue right behind our bottom lip in front of our teeth.  Ha!  Oh, I love those silly days of childhood.  I'm not a child anymore, but I'm definitely still silly.  Case in point......what I'm about to write. And what I'm about to write might even fall in the category of strange, extremely random.....well, I'll let you decide.  ha!

Did you ever have a fence in your yard that you could sit on or climb up on and walk it like a tight rope?  I had a fence sort of like that.  Sometimes when I was a little girl, I'd climb on it and look out over our back yard of 15 acres; just hang out with nature.  However, sitting or climbing on a fence is a fun experience only for a few minutes and then it's time to get back down on the solid ground.  I mean, really, there's only so much you can do on a fence, right?!  Stand, sit, climb....get down.

This week I have been at a conference for collegiate students from around the United States.  It's been a great experience to just enjoy God's beautiful creation here in New Mexico....in the mountains, and it has been great to go to so many inspiring seminars and large group meetings.  Today, while I was in one of the large group meetings, Mr. Michael Kelley was speaking, teaching some really great stuff and I was listening but also thinking about what to blog this afternoon.  For some reason I kept thinking about those statements we've all heard before about "riding the fence" or "sittin' on the fence" on such and such issue. Don't know why, but that's where my mind was tracking.

I just kept getting this image in my head of a white rail fence and there was a dark cloudy area on one side and a bright lighted area on the other.  I thought about how SO MANY times in my life I have lived on the fence between the two extremes.  I suppose I was thinking the dark cloudy area on one side of the fence to be death.....life without purpose, hope, victory, joy; life full of mystery (the bad kind of mystery), deception, confusion.  The bright lighted area on the other side of the fence seemed to represent Life.  The life that I have described in the previous blog posts.

So now, all I wanted to throw out there to all of you who read this is:
Why is it that so many times we find ourselves living on the fence; not sitting or "riding", but actually living there?  We find ourselves so many times balancing on the fence; one side of us exposed to this dark and confusing life-less life and the other side of us exposed to Life, hope, peace, joy and many more wonderful things and benefits of the life in the light.  All of us know that balancing on a fence cannot last forever.  Sooner or later, we all fall; and (pardon my frankness) decking ourselves in the fall. However, many times, those of us who live there on the fence, will just pull ourselves up, shaking from the crash and find ourselves once again walking the tight rope unwilling to get down.

Many times, in our world of juggling so many things: all of our responsibilities, all of our expectations that others tacked upon us, all of our family issues, all of our own personal heartaches and weaknesses, we seem to think that living with one side of our lives in the dark and one side in the light will keep us more centered.  Why?  I do not know.  However, most of us who profess to be people who seek Truth and Life and Light still end up tottering on the fence so close to destruction, things of harmful mystery, deception, temporary pleasure; when really life on the LIGHT side of the fence is SO whole and rich with hope and direction and purpose. What's up with that?!  ha!

Well, what I DO know is I am tempted to totter on a fence instead of enjoy the joyous living of a solid ground, an illuminated mind and clear perspective of the world and a hope for the future.  Are you with me on that?  I desire to make walking the fence a seldom occurrence in my life.  I desire life.....truth.....LIGHT.  It really helps to see when I'm in the light.  ha!

What keeps you from living consistently in the Light?
Have you ever even jumped the fence to be in the Light to begin with?
What is it that keeps you in the side of the fence where there is no light?
What keeps you on the fence?
How do you combat the desire to stay...balancing on the fence?

How crazy am I for writing all this about fences and dark places and light spaces?!!
I'll answer that.  Pretty crazy.
I didn't even clearly write what my thoughts were on what the Light really is. Someone please help me with that description.  My brain is fried today.  May you still be encouraged to be a woman of truth; a woman who daily looks into the core of who you are and seeks to be one of who is truthful (vulnerable, full of grace, self control, tact). One who's truthful even to yourself about who are and your journey in life.
Last question for today: Do you have Life and live in the light?  If you don't and want to know how to get Life, please let me know. My email is: bjhooray@yahoo.com
Thanks for reading. Please respond and help this thought process of mine go somewhere meaningful.