Tag: people

Amusement Park: Haunted House Ride, First Room – People

On By LindaIn allegories, analogies, and parablesLeave a comment

Amusement Park: Haunted House Ride, First Room – People

The ride started off slow and easy. Not too bad so far. But Amalia knew enough about haunted houses to know it wouldn’t stay this way for long.

“Amalia, hold my hand. It will help you know I am with you every inch of the way. When you get nervous, or feel lost, or when we enter the places of darkness, squeeze My hand and I’ll squeeze back reassuring you that I’m still with you. And remember that nothing bad can happen to you when I’m in the car with you.”

They went around a bend, and entered a large, bright, noisy room. People were everywhere! They were on both sides of the track which went straight through the room to another doorway. Some of the people were engaged in a variety of sports including ball games, skating, bike riding, throwing Frisbees, and jogging. Others were busy with quieter activities such as reading, eating, and conversing with each other. A few were napping, and there was at least one group that appeared to be on some kind of tour led by a guide who was pointing in different directions. She watched as a woman lead a line of kids on one side of the track, while two kids appeared to be playing tag on the other.  Most of the people seemed not to notice Amalia and Jesus pass by.

 

However, a few people did notice.

“Hey, there! How’s the ride going?”

“Have fun!”

One group waved, and then got back to their game.

Some people tossing around a beach ball stopped to call out an invitation. “We are having so much fun! Come join us!”

Amalia was tempted to join them. They all appeared to be having such a great time. But when she looked at Jesus with questioning eyes, He just shook His head and the car kept moving.

Before long, the nicer comments were replaced by not-so-nice comments:

“Hey, you’re going the wrong way.”0420200800 (2)

“Where are you going? You should be here with us!”

“Who are you to think it’s okay to keep moving?”

 

As the car continued to move, the comments turned into curses and threats. Some of the angry people threw things at the car, and a few even went so far as to jump at the car. Amalia shrunk back into her seat, but no matter how close they got – so close Amalia could almost feel them – none of them actually touched her or Jesus.

Jesus, on the other hand, didn’t seem bothered by their threatening behavior. His calm voice pulled her attention back to Him as He said, “This room is filled with the people in your life. Most people you encounter don’t pay much attention to you. They are busy with their own lives, and so you pass unnoticed. Other people, however, do notice you. Some of those people are happy to see you and encourage you as you travel your path. They understand that they have their lives and you have yours. A few of them, though, try to persuade you to leave your path to join them on their path. They enjoy their lives and think everyone should do what they do. They have good intentions, but they don’t understand that not everyone is called to do what they do. But, then, there are a number of people, motivated by their own pain, mental illnesses, or even by demonic suggestion, who attack you. They see you moving past them and resent it. They don’t want to move on themselves, and they don’t want you to either. So they try to make you stop by making you feel bad or afraid. But stopping won’t help them. You can’t help those who don’t want to be helped. Ignoring them and moving on is the best thing to do.”

So they did.

The Museum (a symbolic short story)

On By LindaIn allegories, analogies, and parables, short stories1 Comment

Apryl walked through the groups of people that wandered through the many rooms of the museum. As she walked, she was drawn to a room that seemed much brighter than all the others, as if the light within it came from something other than the florescent lights used by the rest of the museum. Curious, she made her way to it and went inside.

Whereas most of the rooms in the museum had been rectangular, this room had way more than four walls. She looked around and counted at least six before the room IMG_20180523_202035005disappeared around a corner. One huge painting, framed and centered, was on each wall. There were different size groups of people standing in front of each painting,  seemingly to be content with that one painting and not interested in any of the others. Other people moved from painting to painting, spending various amounts of time studying the painting before moving on. Occasionally someone would end their tour and settle in front of one of the paintings.

Apryl walked up to the nearest painting. It was a painting of a loaf of bread and a goblet of wine. She had seen paintings like this before, but somehow this one seemed more real. The people standing in front of it were quiet and reverent, rarely taking their eyes off of it.

After a few minutes, Apryl moved on to the next painting. A large Bible was featured in this one. A large group of people were standing around, exchanging self-controlled greetings and pointing to the painting from time to time.

The next painting was of a party. Everyone at the party appeared happy and excited, blowing streamers and raising their arms in victory gestures. The multi-ethnic group gathered here were just as excited as the people in the painting, slapping each other on their backs and speaking in a variety of languages.

Amazed at the differences in both the paintings and the groups of people who had settled at each one, Apryl couldn’t wait to see what she’d find next.

Moving as quickly as she could through the party people, she got to the next painting.  It featured the ten commandments carved on stone, just like what most people imagine Moses’ stone tablets had looked like. The people here were friendly, orderly, and inviting. As much as she enjoyed their interest in her, she moved on to the next one.

She was surprised at what she found in this painting. It was a beautiful swirl of colors with no distinct form that she could see. The people here were also a beautiful mixture of colors and sizes. She liked this one a lot but knew there were others to explore.

As she continued around the room, looking at painting after painting, and noticing how the groups of people in front of each resembled the contents of the paintings, it suddenly dawned in her what this room was all about and what these painting were and why the people were grouped as they were.

She looked up and said, “You know, God, You’re pretty cool. You made each of us unique and then provided for that uniqueness. And I, for one, am grateful!”

 

Apryl figured out the symbolism. Have you?

Tell me your best guess in the comments. I’ll reveal my meaning tomorrow in a special post, but I’m pretty sure some of you will think of even deeper meanings than mine! Have fun!

I’m Not Hurt, Not Really, Part 1

On By LindaIn allegories, analogies, and parables26 Comments

The sidewalk was crowded as Bella made her way down the street. As she walked, she watched the people. Most of the people were not paying attention to anyone else as they hurried to their destinations, not even slowing down as they bumped into fellow travelers. A few people were looking around, lost in the sea of bodies. Even fewer were the people who were actually smiling and trying to make contact with anyone who looked at them.

Bella felt alone in that crowd of people. Everyone, or at least most of them, seemed to know what they were doing and where they were going. Bella knew neither. Full of sadness that she didn’t understand, she walked through the throng trying to avoid being bumped and jostled.

Bam! Without warning, she was knocked flat to the ground.

IMG_20180504_145111100

“Hey, are you OK?” Bella looked up to see a lady rushing towards her.

“Yeah, I’m fine.” She said, trying to brush the lady off. She didn’t need anyone’s help. But as she tried to stand, pain burst through her right hip. She looked down and saw that her entire right side was blood red.

“You ARE hurt,” the lady exclaimed, leaning over her. “Stay down. I’m going to call for an ambulance.” The lady touched her cell phone and groaned, “My battery’s dead. I’ll go find a phone. Be right back” and ran off towards a nearby store.

Bella didn’t wait for her to come back. She didn’t want her help. She was sure she was OK. Maybe a bit bruised but nothing to make a fuss over. Not near as bad as the pain inside her. She managed to get on her feet and began limping in the other direction to avoid the lady seeing her. Up ahead was a church. Perfect. she could hide in there. She really didn’t want to deal with that lady’s insistence that she needed help.

As she limped towards the church, she noticed her limp was getting less pronounced. See, she thought with justification, I’m fine.

Opening the front door to the church, she was surprised at how big it was. Much bigger IMG_20180504_145124393on the inside than it looked on the outside. She was in a large foyer. Several tables were scattered around, most with pieces of paper on them. There were signs   directing church goers to the bathrooms and exits. And in the center stood an indoor fountain. As she limped towards the fountain, she noticed several doors along the back wall. Thinking they might provide a better place to hide, she tried them. The first door went into the kitchen. She peered inside. Empty. She could hide here, but no, it was too close to the door and if that lady had seen her enter the church, it would be the first place she’d look. Bella needed to go deeper into the church.

Opening another door, Bella saw a long hallway with many more doors. Even though she wasn’t limping as much as she did at first, her hip still hurt and she didn’t feel up to trying a bunch more doors that may or may not provide a suitable hiding place. So she closed that door and opened the third door. It looked like a living room. The preacher’s private quarters? She didn’t see anyone so she decided to sneak in there to hide. If she was quiet enough, no one would know she was there. And maybe she would be lucky enough to find a back door leading to a different street where that nosy lady wouldn’t think to look.

As she made her way slowly across the living room she noticed there was indeed a doorway in the back. It looked like it led into a hallway. She shifted her course slightly and headed towards it. Just before she got there, she heard a voice.

“Well, hello there!”

She froze in her tracks. Should she make a run for it? But she was already across the room from the door, and there was no telling where the hall would lead.

To be continued.