I attended my granddaughter’s kindergarten graduation. She goes to a small country school with only fourteen other students in her grade. The teacher asked each child what they wanted to be when they grow up. Of course, the most popular answers were a policeman for boys and a teacher for the girls. There were a couple of strange answers: one girl wants to be a dog and a boy wants to be a pet rock. But one little guy wants to be a fire hydrant.

As I pondered his strange desire a couple of points occurred to me. What does a fire hydrant do? It stands firm where it’s placed, allowing dogs to relieve themselves on it while it simply waits to deliver rushing waters to extinguish nearby fires. I thought deeper about the fire hydrant. How does it work? Its base is rooted in the main water line where it waits for the valve to be opened, at which time the powerful flow of water will come rushing out. I compared that thought to myself; If I stand firm, where God has planted me; not shaken by the storms or changing seasons, offering myself as a place for people to relieve themselves until Father opens the valve, what can be accomplished through me? Would the Living Water in me have a flow strong enough to extinguish the fiery arrows of the enemy? The desire to be like a fire hydrant suddenly didn’t seem so strange after all.

“Always carry the shield of trust, with which you will be able to extinguish the flaming arrows of the Evil One.” Don’t be afraid to stand firm where you are planted. Still not sure a fire hydrant is part of your future? Make Paul’s prayer your own today: “Whenever I open my mouth, the words will be given to me to be bold in making known the secret of the Good News…. I pray that I may speak boldly, the way I should.” (Ephesians 6:16-19) Amen