Victory Collection-Book One

Lightning Over the Volcano

Lightning Over the Volcano

Mount Tambora, in Indonesia, erupted in 1918. Ash traveled to the United States, causing what became known as The Year Without a Summer". There was a drought that year and the summer was cold. Carbon dioxide gas causes a greenhouse effect and particles decrease sunlight and lowers global temperatures. Frost caused crops to fail, and it created a food shortage. People moved away and the place became a ghost town. All because volcanic ash traveled tens of thousands of kilometers away! The eruption releases radioactive gases into the atmosphere as well. The analogy that is inferred is that relationships can explode and can have wide-spread ramifications.

More recently, Mount St. Helens' volcano erupted in Washington State. Particles scattered throughout the United States and, withing two weeks, traveled around the globe. Over five billion board feet of timber was destroyed. Almost 540 tons of ash were expelled. The mountain lost 1300 feet of elevation.

Lightning above an active volcano is a spectacular sight! It reminds me of the way many human relationships are volatile, scorching everything in its path and burning bridges. When emotions erupt like a volcano, it can cause engaging lightning bolts that can do irreparable damage.

The plume of the eruption, and the result of particle rubbing against each other, is called a "dirty thunderstorm", which causes huge sparks from energy. With couples, the little negative words and individual traits rub against each other, and people often fight dirty and cause friction. In nature, it is a combination of electrons (negative charges) trying to get in balance with protons (larger positive charges). Positive elements draw a certain amount of negative energy to itself, to maintain balance. But, when negative charges try to overpower the positivity, the excess is cast out in the form of lightning.

An analogy would be like the eternal challenge between good and evil (God and the much less viable Satan). That would include the casting out of Satan and all the angels who fell with him and are now demons. Ephesians 6:12 (New International Version) says "We do not struggle against flesh and blood, but the principalities, rulers and authorities of spiritual forces of evil in this dark world."

In the same way, human emotions, while doing battle, can become negative from a kind of static electricity. Tempers erupt and invite possible disaster. Opposites attract, so negative people gravitate toward a positive person's energy. But, at the same time, they resent them and attempt to destroy the positive energy by trying to control it. I thought of a woman who tries to control her more positive husband, to bring him down. The husband tries to find peace and balance by getting rid of the excess negativity. The balance-seeking protons look for equality by taking on too many electrons, thus becoming unbalanced again. People can be like that, for example our imaginary couple. The husband might see his wife as weaker, so he takes her in volume. He underestimates her power and neglects to see they have the same power, even though the electron (the wife) might be smaller.

Then ice crystal form in the atmosphere (like coldness between people) enough for an electrical charge to create lightning. It happens in the clouds. People who start out with their heads in the clouds can clash when reality sets in. The trouble with lightning is that it can sometimes strike the ground_ our very foundation.

Remember the controlling wife? She was drawn to her husband's positive attitude, spirituality and ability to support her in a certain lifestyle. (He was a successful attorney.) Unlike the proton, he lowered his standard of tolerance, because of frustration, and lost his law practice simultaneously. She saw him as less positive. Therefore, she looked for an alternative. It could have been new house, an expensive ski vacation or lessons with a tennis pro. But, she could no longer afford those things, so she opted for another positive person, who was also destined to be challenged by her.

That's what happens with lightning-causing negative and positive energy. The negative searches for an alternative challenge and is never satisfied with what it has. The ions, which are unbalanced atoms, can have too many negative or too many possitive charges. And, with humans, too much power on either side can cause an explosive unbalance. Like the ions, they both try to stay in balance. But, it can be a struggle.

As insidious as negative electrons (and words) are, we think of them as being little and not able to do much damage. But, when they gather together and seep into our conversations and daily lives, we forget that each one, individually, has the same electrical charge (power) as a bigger proton of positivity. We underestimate their impact, and they can destroy. As long as the positive side keeps the negative in check, good will win out in the end.