The Fire Within Part 2

July8, 2026

A few weeks ago, I visited a dear friend in the hospital, who was very ill and undergoing a battery of tests. Looking at me with tired, sorrowful eyes, he said, “I just don't feel fully alive anymore. I wonder if I am going to die.”

This was an uncharacteristic remark from someone who is usually full of vim and vigor. Though he was weak, he did not seem near death to me — I felt his life force. But I understood he was tired and anxious. Yet beneath his fear, I could still see that old glimmer in his eyes. I asked him to do one simple thing—something I was taught by a wise mentor years ago and that was expanded by other spiritual teachers over the years. I do this when I feel the life force ebbing in me.

I said to my friend, “Close your eyes for a moment. Now just relax.”

“Drop into your heart and feel the love that lives there. Think about those you love and have loved you into being. Now move your attention into your belly. Feel the strength in you that anchors you to the earth. Finally, imagine opening a skylight at the top of your head. Let warm Divine light pour through your mind and into your entire nervous system.”

“Let go of any negative emotion. Picture it leaving your body, it exits from your back, in the form of vapor.”

“Feel the energy of life flowing through your heart, your body, and your mind. Let yourself rest in that aliveness. Notice how connected you are—not only to yourself, but to a Source greater than yourself.”

When he opened his eyes, he smiled faintly. He said he felt a little better.

Later that week, however, he called to tell me his condition had worsened. He said, however, he believed the journey he took inward gave him something precious to cling to during his fear. Beneath the illness, beneath the uncertainty, a sacred fire continued to burn—a life force he did not create and could not possess. I am happy to say that he made it through the illness and is now fully recovered.

The same is true for each of us. It is human to have times when we feel disconnected from our source, the fire of our Divine Origin. We all have times when we worry about our health and physical condition. We all have times when we worry about someone we care for, or our dreams seem to collapse. These anxieties can diminish the awareness of our life force and we can feel untethered and unanchored.

But at any time, and even in this very moment, we can pause and reconnect with the fire within—the mysterious energy that animates our hearts, minds, and bodies. For many, this inner fire is evidence of something sacred, a reminder that we are tethered to a life far greater than ourselves.

Spiritual Practice In your meditation, as you sit quietly, follow your breaths into the center of your being. When you arrive, let your breath surround your life’s fire and become one with it. Can you feel oneness with your life force’s energy?

Inquiry Why is the life force described as fire?

Prayer

Dear God,

Thank You for my friend's life and for the sacred fire that burns within each of us. When fear causes us to forget who we are, the source from which we came and to which we are still vitally connected, Thank You for the reminders within our body that you placed the fire of love within us. Help us trust that fire, honor it, and share its warmth with the world.

Amen