The Fire Extinguisher - A Trigger

It is hard to believe that we have come to this point in the service, and Suzy (a puppet who participates in leading worship from time to time) has not noticed and interrupted to ask, “Why is there a fire extinguisher on the altar?”

Or maybe, just maybe… Suzy did see the fire extinguisher and let it pass because it makes absolutely perfect sense!

 

I have shared with you before the words of author Annie Dillard:

On the whole, I do not find Christians, outside of the catacombs, sufficiently sensible of conditions. Does anyone have the foggiest idea what sort of power we so blithely invoke? Or as I suspect, does no one believe a word of it? The churches are children playing on the floor with their chemistry sets, mixing up a batch of TNT to kill a Sunday morning. It is madness to wear ladies’ straw hats and velvet hats to church; we should all be wearing crash helmets. Ushers should issue life preservers and signal flares; they should lash us to our pews. For the sleeping god may wake someday and take offense, or the waking god may draw us out to where we can never return.

 

Luckily, we are prepared! We have fire extinguishers in the building! Usually this one, is on the wall to my right, in plain view of the congregation while worshiping. There is a second extinguisher at the back of the sanctuary. And there are others in the hall.

We are ready for the Spirit to come.

This is too hopeful a thought. The fire extinguishers in this space have probably never been connected to the Holy Spirit. They are here because of the fire code for public buildings and for insurance purposes; and rightly so, this is an older building with lots of wood in a space where we have candles with open flames, and sometimes we burn incense too.

 

We have fire extinguishers in this space!

And today they are here to remind us that the Holy Spirit is very much moving among us; setting fires, kindling hope, sparking ideas, and igniting passion and action.

 

As I shared a few weeks ago, I have been learning about Emotional Intelligence.  A portion of the course teaches that is possible to re-wire our brains; we can change our emotional response to triggers by planting new images. We can train our brains to be triggered. I am going to invite you to do something crazy --- we are going to plant a trigger that has us consciously think about the Holy Spirit in our daily lives.

Look at the fire extinguisher. Put what you see as a picture in your mind. Now turn it into a black and white picture. Make the picture  -the extinguisher- bigger. Keep focusing on the image. You have been sitting in church and have prayed, sung a hymn. Imagine that at this moment you hear someone reading scripture.  All of a sudden, the fire extinguisher comes alive! The stop pin flies out. The nozzle lifts, pointing towards the ceiling above the congregation. The handle depresses all by itself. With great force a white powdery fog blasts into the air.

Now picture the particles of fog connecting with pop, pop, pops. Tiny shimmering flames appear and rapidly drop to rest atop peoples’ heads. As the fog disappears, there is holy fire everywhere. Run that movie through your head one more time.

 

I invite you to take a hand and make an ‘O’. When you think of the particles connecting, pop --- pop your fingers upward.  Listen to the sound.  Try it by both ears.

Pop, pop, pop… there are tiny shimmering flames – there is holy fire everywhere.

When a new idea is formed in someone’s mind – pop- another flame. When hope is kindled – pop- another flame. When love bursts in a heart – pop- another flame. When kindness erupts -pop- another flame. When grace blazes… when peace flickers … when passion is ignited…

 

You can replay the still picture of the fire extinguisher, the movie created, the movement and popping sound as many times as you want.  The more you put this image in your mind, the more likely that when you see a fire extinguisher in your travels, you will think of the Holy Spirit and holy fire bursting everywhere.

 

In our world today, it is important to have triggers that remind us of who we are and what we are to be about in the world. It is too easy to get smothered in news feeds, entangled in other peoples’ drama, and to suffocate under pressure and stress. The world over, people have their fire snuffed out by accumulated grief and circumstances, while others rage with destructive fire.

 

The fire extinguisher movie reminds me of the times that I have been passionate; times when I have chosen to speak out, to get to the bottom of a situation, to call the powers that be and state my concern.  These tiny shimmering flames – the times I get really passionate and feel like I am going to explode – this is the Holy Spirit at work. In me passion and flame is usually connected to wisdom and more specifically teaching and learning.  This passion – the tiny shimmering tongue of fire that the Holy Spirit has lit on me – directs how I teach confirmation and explore faith within community; how I go about structuring religious framework and instilling ways for others to grow from that structure. My passion includes inviting others to wonder in creation, interpret scripture, hold various truth, contemplate God in a wholesome and life-giving way---all this in a beautiful fog that kindles seeds and fans more passions which are the Holy Spirit’s way of working in the world.

 

What sets you on fire? What gets you going – as in angry, sad, excited, curious? What actions do you take? These are the tiny shimmering flames, the tongues of fire from the Holy Spirit that rest on you; that are popped into the world through you.

 

When you see a fire extinguisher, remember that the Holy Spirit rests on you. The tiny shimmering flames – the passions you have- feed them like wildfire.  Pursue them. Share them. Act on them. Embody holy fire.  Holy fire suppresses and extinguishes fires of destruction and desperation. 

 

We have fire extinguishers in church! We are ready for God to come in out-of-the-box ways.

We do have hope and faith that goodness is great than evil, that the Holy Spirit does move among us and does work through us to spread God’s shimmer through the world.

Stand in the blast of fire extinguisher – be filled with the Holy Spirit—and shimmer.

(making the popping movement/sound by ears) Patience. Forgiveness. Love. Peace. Grace. Kindness.

Passion. Passion. Passion.