Living Exposed

There has been a theme developing in me lately. I realize that so much of my life is lived protected. When I drive, I do so from behind a windshield that protects me from bugs and rocks and wind and rain. When I go to the grocery store, I am protected from the heat or cold by A/C or an industrial furnace. The phone keeps me from really having to interact with other people face to face. Email keeps me safe behind a computer screen. My stove provides me with a safe little heat source to heat things, without me having to build a fire and find dry wood. And the god of my kitchen - the microwave - gives me whatever I want, when ever I want, without much inconvenience at all. Everything in my life exists to keep me alive and happy.

Think about it - Vitamins to help me stay healthy so I live longer. Safety glass so I don't get hurt; marked lines on the road that keep others from careening into my lane; airbags in front and to the side of me in my car; little reflectors on the center line of the road; security check points at the airport.........Should I go on?

All these things to keep us alive longer and safe. All of life's modern conveniences so life is a little more comfortable. But at what price? It seems that we have gotten so good at living protected and safe that we have forgotten to live. Our 'living longer' has surpassed our 'living'. Somewhere along the assembly line of safety, we forgot how to be fully alive.

I'm not saying we should live to endanger ourselves. I am saying that there is a reason people are unhappy in their safe little lives, because somewhere they traded safe and protected for being fully alive. When our survival is more important than our living, we start to die.

It is everywhere around you - that insulating layer we have created around ourselves to keep us safe from the bad things in life- the problem is that it has also insulated us from the good. How are we to hear our Papa's voice when we have set up such an elaborate system of distractions and safety systems that keeps us disconnected from anything real?

When was the last time you stood in the rain and just got wet? When was the last time you really looked your spouse in the eye and laid out something vulnerable and tender even though the chances of having it returned were null? When was the last time you turned off the air conditioning and rolled down the windows in the car and stuck your head out? When was the last time you felt fully alive?

I want to live exposed to all that there is in life. I know much of what I do might be foolish. But I want to feel the blood course through my veins. I want to know the hot and cold, even if for just a moment. I want to challenge that unconscious demand inside of me that says, without me even being aware of it, that I MUST be safe, I MUST be comfortable - ALWAYS! I want to live fully exposed to my Papa's love, uninsulated from anything He has given me. I want to be alive.