Good morning…
Our writers’ group of ten women has been meeting most months for over ten years. So when one writer challenged us last week with the quandary of a quote, a variety of comments came cascading down. You will remember the initial words from our recent post Drill Deep.
“This a small section of something I read today,” the instigator wrote. “When one gallon of water is spread to its thinnest molecules, it can cover an area of nearly five square miles. It would be difficult to see, and beyond that it would be ineffectual for any real purposes. However, if the molecules of that same gallon of water were stacked end to end, it would form a straw that would reach all the way to the center of the earth. The same gallon has the ability to be spread thin, but it is also capable of reaching extreme depths. This left me wondering, am I being poured wide, or drilled deep? Am I scattered too far to be effective?”
The initial email was titled “Will our work be deep or wide?” To this poignant question, the first woman responded: “Wow! Very interesting. Thanks for sharing. Sadly, I think I know my answer…”
“Well, there it is!” wrote the next person. “My song. Now….what to do with it???????????????.”
“I love the invitation presented here,” I responded next. “Digging deep into God’s Spirit is always the best answer. You may see these words coming back to you in a blog post sometime soon my friends! ???.”
“Very interesting thought,” came the next woman’s response. “My best answer is that both are plausible – wide and deep. As writers we will influence people that we will never meet. That appears to be wide. Then there are those we meet face to face that we are able to affect in a different way – deeply.”
“Great point,” I responded. “Deep and wide, just like the childhood song taught us about God’s flowing fountain bubbling up from within to spread out endlessly. I do think drilling deep daily is the key to God’s overflow. How deep? That’s our job, our daily discipline. As we tap into God’s living stream within, God determines where the flow of our spiritual gifts go. How wide? That is God’s job. Our life-giving gift to God is to drill deep each day, trusting God to do what only God can do, widening our gifts wildly into the world. I love being in this eternal flow with God with each of you.”
“I was just thinking about the childhood song and singing it in my mind:),” came the next response. “Love being reminded about these things and reading your responses! Love to each of you.”
“Hello All,” our final friend wrote. “This has been a most thought-provoking e-mail string! Thank you all for your words, which I’ve been pondering. I’ve come up for air from my “May Mess” (Sue’s blog post from Monday) – and found out today that my husband is traveling on Tuesday. By chance, would Tuesday 5/28 work for us to meet at our house? This is very last minute – but wanted to give it a try. Have a lovely weekend!❤️”
Yes. Yes. Yes. And a few no’s came trickling in. A handful of us gathered last night, going deep over dinner. We each wake expectant this morning, trusting God to spread the ink fountain of our pens, wider and wider, as we drill deeper and deeper.
Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him. Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong. And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is. May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God (Ephesians 3:17-19, NLT).
…Sue…
P.S. If you do not know the children’s song “Deep And Wide,” here is a bohemian version for your cheerful enjoyment.
