Before you Crack...

The sound, so I am told, was unforgettable. First a Crack and Boom; next, water is going everywhere. The weight and pressure must have been unbearable for the worn out old pump. What am I referring to? What you see pictured is called a pump volute. It is essentially a housing that surrounds the impeller (the rotor in the pump that increases pressure as well as gallons of flow). With the housing cracked and broken, the pump loses its ability to force water, essentially disabling the entire fire truck. Unfortunately, this scenario became a reality for one of our brush trucks last week.
The culprit was simply that the filling valve on the back of the truck (which is plumbed directly into the pump) had nothing to support its weight. As 150 gallons per minute of water flowed into the filling valve, the weight became insurmountable. The result is what you see in the above picture.
In life, the flow of our daily grind can slowly wear down on us. As we go about our daily work, the pressure builds tension and eventually we crack. But what if we were designed with a support system to help us cope? What if we could relieve the tension so the inevitable "cracking" never occurs?
From Acts 4...All the believers were one in heart and mind. No one claimed that any of his possessions was his own, but they shared everything they had. With great power the apostles continued to testify to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and much grace was upon them all. There were no needy persons among them. For from time to time those who owned lands or houses sold them, brought the money from the sales and put it at the apostles' feet, and it was distributed to anyone as he had need.
I have more verses regarding the first century church and a supportive community than I have space to write. The truth is, a community is absolutely necessary in order to help us cope. Had Christ simply died for our sins, then left us with no support system, what good would that have served? No, Christ knew that we would need a community to give us the support we need.

Many have read my previous posting, I want to be tired. In that posting, I spoke about how I do not believe we are created to live a life seeking refreshment. I believe we have work to do on this earth and we need a greater sense of urgency in our work. When I speak of a supportive community today, it is not in contradiction of my former post. In fact, I believe it backs up my previous statement. The "supportive community" of which I speak is not intended as a crutch, but rather an encourager to press on and work towards the goal.