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May 20, 2003 - "The Oasis"
Poetry Contest Winners! www.2theheart.com/poetrycontest2003
Welcome to 2TheHeart!
"Obstacles are those frightful things you see when you take your eyes off your goal." ~Henry Ford
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WRITING WORKSHOPS! Our next series begins this week! Choose from our four different workshops that will help you hone your writing skills and get published! Register now! www.2theheart.com/WritingWorkshops
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It's our annual "Guy Week" on 2TheHeart! This is always lots of fun and it's a week filled with stories, quotes and poems by the men of 2TheHeart! We're kicking off the week with Mike's story of an oasis and his journey toward one that inspired him, as I know it will you!
"The Oasis"
by Mike Collins
When I was in the Marines, I lived at Camp Pendleton, California, for around a year. While there some friends talked me into joining them for a weekend trip to the desert. I had never been to a desert, but because I had seen many on television and in movies, I thought I knew what to expect. Boy was I wrong! I was fortunate to have made the trip with my friends because they were familiar with the area and knew what precautions to take. They made sure I brought two canteens full of water and was wearing appropriate protective clothing.
We set out for the desert, and I could not believe my eyes when we arrived. Expecting dunes of sand stretching as far as the eye could see, I was puzzled when instead I saw mountains and mounds of nothing but rock. No dirt, no trees - just various sized rocks spanning the horizon. The problem was you could not see the horizon because the hazy heat rising from the rocks blurred it.
I couldn't believe how much water I needed just to make it for such short periods of time. The heat was brutal. It not only pounded you from above, it also stabbed from underneath you as it reflected from the seemingly billions of rocks that you honestly could have fried an egg on. Before I realized it, I had consumed all the water from both canteens, and I panicked because I was deep inside the desert with no water and I knew how much water it took to get where I was.
Then in the middle of this rock-infested barren wasteland, we happened upon what looked like an oasis. As I walked closer and closer to it, I wondered if it was real or just a mirage as I had seen portrayed in movies and cartoons. It was real, and it was the most beautiful thing I had ever laid eyes on. In the middle of nothing but rocks, here was an area that had trees, dirt and yes - water. It was the most refreshing water I had ever tasted in my life - not to mention the coldest. I wondered how it could be possible for this to exist in the middle of the harshest deserts, and how its water could be so cold in one of the hottest places I have ever been.
We filled our canteens and headed back home completely refreshed. This is what we had made the trip for. This was the reason we had walked through the burning desert, risking heat exhaustion or heat stroke only to be refreshed by the cool waters of a hidden spring.
I learned quite a bit from my experience. First of all, I learned that the desert doesn't always look or feel the way I thought it would. I also learned that had I never walked the dry harsh burning rocks into the middle of the desert, I would never have found that beautiful oasis, never have experienced the coolness or the refreshing qualities the water had to offer, and never have experienced the treasure hidden within those trees in the middle of nothing but rocks.
You may be walking through a spiritual oasis right at this very moment. This may be a dry spell in your life, and you may feel as though your spiritual canteens have been depleted. My friend, God has an oasis waiting for you. As a New Hinson song says, God is your oasis, in dry places He makes flowers grow. God is your oasis, and where His grace is living waters flow.
I know it's hot, I know it's painful, and I know you feel you are running out of time, but if you will just unscrew the caps of your spiritual canteens, I'm most certain God will place an oasis in the middle of your desert too.
Mike Collins copyright 2003
mikecollinsemail@yahoo.com
Mike wrote "Mike's Knives", "Cowboys and Indians" & "The Valentine Balloon", found in our archives. He is a syndicated columnist, broadcaster and author of Christian-related material.
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The Letter Box:
I'm having computer problems and can't get to my email, so I'll be running the Letter Box notes as soon as I can!
*** Send all mail to me at xoxosooz@yahoo.com
until further notice.
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