Photo by Pam Menegakis on Unsplash
Have you ever watched someone work the grill at a cookout, then you know that the best time to slap them burgers and hot dogs on is when the fire goes out, and all that remains are the coals. You don’t want to cook the food while the lighter fluid and the flames are prevalent. That fluid smell needs to burn off and the flames need to die down. Otherwise, your food will taste like lighter fluid and it will be burnt.
Life has a tendency to show up just like that grill. Sometimes we are on fire with purpose and passion, to the point where we are scorching ourselves and others while trying to make things happen. Impatience overrides our decision making process. Excitement rises as we anticipate the meal that we visualized during the prep stage. Fear tells us that waiting will minimize the affect of our efforts, so we start piling on more and more. Now we are caught up in the anxiousness of those waiting alongside us for the finished product. However, haste makes waste! But, we accept the lighter fluid that is poured on us, when the world says that we need to keep battling the flames of success. Don’t you know that the food of life tastes much better when the coals have simmered, and the smell of success comes from the smoke and not the flames? Never allow others to pour into you what God has not ordained. Be careful about looking around for validation when the wind has blown your flame of life out! Sometimes what you need is hidden even from you. Just like that grill, even though the flames are gone the coals remain hidden and hot, and that’s the best time to cook up something. Everything in your life does not have to be about pompous and circumstance. When all that remains are the coals, you get the best burgers and hot dogs from the grill. Do not be fooled by the flames.