After days of smoke, the winds shifted in the right direction yesterday to give us clear skies in the evening. It was a relief to look up and see the sun in its normal color and the blue of the skies. It felt good to breathe the clear air. We were able to have our 4th of July picnic outdoors on the deck. But there is a long, hot summer ahead for us.

We’re pretty much straight downwind from the Oil Creek Fire northeast of Newcastle, Wyoming. At nearly 59,000 acres it has potential to churn up a lot of smoke. Crews are getting the upper hand on the White Draw fire near Edgemont. At 80% containment the 9,000 acre blaze didn’t quite reach the Parker Peak fire burning nearby.

And there has been some rain in Colorado. The Conference Minister of the Rocky Mountain Conference reported that so far no church buildings have been lost, though numbers of members of our congregations have lost their homes and many more still do not know the status of their homes as they wait for a safe time to return to their neighborhoods to check on their homes.

There are fires throughout the west. Our church has started a special “Emergency USA” fund to help with recovery for those who have lost homes and a call has gone out for more Church World Service “clean up” and “hygiene” kits.

When we are staring through smoky skies and wondering if the rains will ever come, it is easy for us to forget that we are not the only ones experiencing extreme conditions. We are not. In Turkey, firefighters are battling several blazes along the Syrian border. Their efforts have been hampered by intense smoke and the need to keep helicopters back from the border to avoid intensifying the conflict between the nations. Some have theorized that the fires were deliberately set as a means to flush refugees from camps on the Turkish side of the border. More than 35,000 refugees from Syria are in cams near Yayladagi, Turkey and clashes continue on the Syrian side of the border. Syrian activists say that more than 14,000 have been killed since the uprising began in March of 2011.

And there are other victims of hot and dry conditions in this world. In Somalia hundreds of thousands of children are at risk of hunger. Poor rains and continuing conflict continue to place people, especially children, at risk of starvation according to the charity Save the Children. Hundreds of thousands of Somalis have fled rural areas, many of which are controlled by Islamist militants who have banned international aid agencies. The aid agencies are still operating in the cities, but it is difficult to get food to those who are most in need. Many Somalis have walked across the borders of the country to camps in Kenya and Ethiopia. Still more have crowded into Mogadishu, the capital of the country, secured by forces of the African Union backed by the United Nations. Somalia has had no effective central government since 1991 and has been wracked by perpetual fighting ever since. Piracy and lawlessness have flourished and the children, who have never known peace, continue to suffer from hunger. Last year, East Africa was hit by the region’s worst drought in 60 years and thousands died. A repeat of that experience appears quite possible as crops fail due to drought conditions this year.

A little smoke in the skies seems mild in comparison to the realities others are suffering.

Fire is an important symbol in the history of our faith. Moses was called by God at the sight of a burning bush. On Pentecost God’s spirit appeared as tongues of fire resting on the heads of those who were gathered in the upper room. The power of fire has produced awe and wonder in our people for as long as we can remember. The sight of a wildfire is awesome as well. The unpredictability and power of fire commands our attention and our respect. Despite advanced equipment and firefighting techniques, there are times when the fires simply rage beyond control and structures cannot be saved despite the best efforts of the firefighters.

The patterns of weather that contribute to the conditions that make the fire also amaze and confound us. Although we have more information to predict weather patterns than previous generations, we are still a long way from fully understanding the patterns of weather that affect life on this earth. Where the rain falls and where it doesn’t can affect the lives of hundreds of thousands of people.

As we pray for the victims around the world, we stand in awe of forces that we do not understand. The power of Creation is beyond our ability to comprehend. When we are at our best, we are moved to compassion for those who have had their lives threatened, who have lost their homes and businesses, who have lost their sense of security. May we work with others to provide hospitality to those who are displaced by fire and by violence. May we contribute to bringing food to the hungry. May we offer spiritual support to those in the midst of crisis. Surely the conditions of the world are such that we should be moved to action, contributing in the ways we are able to the relief of others.

But there is more. When we are tempted to look inward and complain because of smoke in the skies, when we are feeling sorry for ourselves because our plans for holiday celebrations need to be changed, when we are tempted by self-centeredness, may we open our eyes to the needs of others. Our faith declares that we are not alone. We are connected to others around the world. The same power that brings hope to our darkest hours when others pray with and for us calls us to pray with and for those who suffer in other places as well. Their suffering is not isolated – we are connected to those who suffer in other places as well.

May there be fire in our hearts as we are filled with passion to bring the mercy of God to others in this season of suffering and loss.

Copyright © 2012 by Ted Huffman. I wrote this. If you want to copy it, please ask for permission. There is a contact me button at the bottom of this page. If you want to share my blog a friend, please direct your friend to my web site.