| “Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” |
| —Psalm 139:23-24 |
“We are all jerks!” the Chief said.
At 2:30 in the morning, we had rolled on a Box Alarm for what was dispatched as Box 22. This could be serious. Box 22 was the five-story women’s dormitory of brick joist construction. It was one of the oldest buildings on campus, and one on which we had repeatedly drilled because it’s lowest level contained a high pressure steam boiler used to provide steam for the college’s milk pasteurizing plant. The lowest level also contained the main kitchen for one of the college’s dining halls.
At the time, I served as Captain on Engine 29. We had a very well-drilled “standard operating procedure.” Our role was to stop at the southeast corner of the building and stretch two supply lines and connect our Engine to a hydrant located just beyond the northeast corner of the building. Engine 27 would stop at the southeast corner of the building, connect our supply lines to its pump, and stretch two 2 1/2-inch attack lines and two 1 1/2-inch attack lines to the building. Aerial Platform Truck 1 would position at the east side of the building and extend the aerial platform to the fifth floor window and install an escape chute to allow women on the upper floor to escape, if necessary.
I had inadvertently bumped the volume control on my two-way portable radio, effectively muting the audio. Thus, I did not hear the frantic call from the Chief telling me to not lay the supply lines—some 400 ft of 2 1/2-inch hose lines.
You see, the dispatcher had misread the punched paper tape that recorded the incoming Box number. A piece of paper had slid onto the tray beneath the tape. Actually Box 23, not Box 22, had transmitted. In fact, this was the Box for the other women’s dormitory. One of the residents had lost her balance in the hallway, started to fall, grabbed for something to catch her balance, and accidentally pulled the interior manual fire alarm box, which actuated the Master Fire Alarm Box and transmitted the Box 23 signal to dispatch.
So, we stretched all that hose unnecessarily. To say the least, I was embarrassed beyond description. As soon as the Chief caught up with me, I apologized and described myself as a “jerk” for bumping the volume control on my radio to the muted position. That’s when the Chief responded, “We’re all jerks!”
Every one of us does things, says things, and thinks things that are “jerky.” We all have behaviors and thoughts that we shouldn’t do or have. I truly believe that is what motivated the Psalmist to write these words, found in Psalm 139:23-24:
Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.
As we begin a new day, let’s make this verse our prayer. By asking God to search us and know our hearts, He can help us find the peace we need to follow the pathway He lays out before us.
But, what about the end of the day? Take time in prayer at the end of each day to ask God to remind you of those times He touched your life during the day. Rev. Dr. David R. Mains and his wife, noted author Karen Burton Mains, call this a “God Hunt.” Specifically, at the end of every day, ask God to remind you of one or more of the following:
- Any obvious answer to prayer, or …
- Any special evidence of God’s care, or …
- Any help to do God’s work in the world, or …
- Any unusual linkage or timing
What a blessedly wonderful way to end our day. So, let’s begin our day with the prayer from Psalm 139:23-24 and end our day with the daily “God Hunt.” It doesn’t get any better than that. Okay?
