Blanket of Smoke

Almost 400,000 acres have burned in the Wallow Fire in eastern Arizona. That is bigger than the size of Phoenix. Sunday, I drove to pick Lis up from Flagstaff and seriously needed the windshield wipers to see through the ash.

The winds are strong and blowing northeast so all the smoke is blowing into New Mexico. It looks like a horror movie about the end of the world with the red sun, sunsets and barely visible moon. The smoke is massive and inescapable. When we are sitting around a campfire and the smoke moves toward us, we can simple scooch our lawn chair over to fresh air. This is impossible to scooch away from since it is blanketing our state and has been for almost a week now.

This heavy smoke is impacting the health of New Mexicans so imagine what it does to those brave men and women battling the blaze where it stands. What dangers they put themselves in to protect the homes and lives of all of us.

All this thick, smelly air has also messed with the minds of those of us who have lived through a fire where we were evacuated before. Our friendly, little town was impacted by a fire 10 years ago and many families lost their homes. What we remember the most about that time was the incredible outpouring of love and support we received.

With all the tornadoes, tsunamis, and now fires, there is no shortage of places to give. Helping others is the best feeling we can achieve for ourselves. Remember the saying, "It is not what you gather, but what you scatter that matters in life." And the whole JOY premise is to put Jesus then Others before Yourself. As I sit here under the ever present smoke blanket, I hope to take time to pray for those who are trying to rebuild their lives from nothing, across our nation and across our world.

In Him,
Joyful