Chapter Seven
Onward and Upward
As a child, I enjoyed playing a game called "Hot or Cold". One of us would hide an object in the room and the rest would hunt for it. The hider would say cold, colder, warm, warmer, hot, hotteer, until we found the object we were hunting. A sense of excitement and achievement was felt as we got hotter and discovered the prize.
Christ said this regarding hot and cold: "So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth." Revelations 3:16
To stay lukewarm is to stop playing the game. To move into and remain in colder regions means we are not listening. The integrity of the game was never questioned. No one lied to keep us off track. The desire was to aid the seeker and keep him progressing toward the goal.
An athlete performing at his best is said to be "hot". One who stops progressing and gets left behind is said to be "stopped cold" or "frozen in his tracks". As heat expands and cold contracts, so does ones awareness grow as it becomes a burning desire. As popcorn begins to dance i the pan just before it bursts into a "popped" corn virtually turning inside out, so can we experience enthusiasm, excitement and growth as we warm inside, anticipating a bursting forth of new ideas, opportunities, or experiences. Faith leading to action is sometimes expressed as a "burning desire". Good feelings and joyous observtions are said to "warm the heart". Hesitancy, doubt, and uncertainty in our response is sometimes referred to as having "cold feet". One who stands aloof, distant, and uninterested is said to be "cold".
Those who fly do so because they have learned to utilize the rising air currents and apply the physical laws of air flow which provide lift because of an increase, or rise, in pressure as air passes around the wings. We can soar like eagles.
As we have learned to work in harmony with natural law, we have been able to break the barriers imposed by gravity and expand our adventure into outer space. As we learn to work in harmony with divine law, we remove barriers to our spiritual insight and are able to soar to new heights of self-awareness and increased vision. As we see further from the mountain top than from the valley, so we can see farther looking upward than downward. Our gaze upward lets us see the stars.