Sometimes it’s not good to be on fire …

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There was some excitement last week when NASA released new 3-D photos of the sun, showing us the radiant orb in ways we haven’t seen before.

The photos were taken from NASA’s Solar TErrestrial RElations Observatory (STEREO) satellites. The new view will greatly aid scientists’ ability to understand solar physics and thereby improve space weather forecasting.

While the 3-D pictures were interesting, they weren’t as exciting as other releases from NASA. Many people found themselves captivated watching on their televisions as an unmanned rover trapsed the landscape of Mars. The world watched multiple moon landings and men walking the lunar surface. And photos such as the discovery of new rings around Saturn or some tiny little planet on the outreaches of the solar system have always garnered great interest.

The new pictures of the sun drew less interest because, well let’s face it, it’s just the sun! There won’t be any signs of life to be found there. No vegetation, and definitely no water. No means of supporting human life. The other photos and TV broadcasts draw people because human beings look for places where they can thrive, not fry.

Is that your church? Is your church a place that fosters an environment where people can thrive? Or is it a dry, spiritually desolate place?

What about your home? Is your home a place where each member of the family can thrive at being fully the individual God has created them to be? Or is it a place where hopes, dreams, and relationships wither and die?

What about you? Can others thrive in your company? Do you feed the life that God has given others, or are you an oven to those around you?

And what about your own mind and heart? Are you searching for a place where you can thrive? John 10:10 gives us the single greatest source of thriving, and that is in relationship with Jesus Christ, “The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life.”

What do the pictures of your life today reflect: thriving, or frying?

Scotty