Drinking from a Fire Hose

By Lulu Morrison, Class of 2027

As I entered into this nine-month program, I was aware of so much newness: new friends, new home, new church, new internship. And so far, nearly everyone I’ve met has offered the same advice:

“It is going to feel like you are drinking from a fire hose.”

Truthfully, it does. But not in the way I expected.

Where I feel the most flooded is not in learning new software for my internship or in reading for seminary class, but in meeting so many people who love the fellows and who want to know me. In bible study, led by Mac and Connor Harris, we are unpacking 1 John which starts,

“The life appeared; we have seen it and testify to it, and we proclaim to you eternal life, which was with the Father and has appeared to us. We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ.” (1 John 1:2-3).

We are able to have fellowship with the six others in our class, and with families and friends of the Fellows community, because Jesus wanted a relationship with us first. This invitation is not exclusive and it is not because of anything we have done. There is something very special in knowing that I do not have to prove myself to be in this community. 

Through John’s letters, he encourages readers to seek honest relationships. He calls us (as Jesus calls us) to walk in the light. To do this fully means seeing one another and allowing yourself to be seen. Likewise, embracing the fellows program means to be vulnerable and honest with my unique walk with Christ and trust I will be received. 

Having a community where we are encouraged to be more open with our stories is both a new opportunity and a challenge. Yet when I read 1 John, I feel hope about what this year can bring. In nine months I hope I can say I have learned and experienced as much as I possibly could have through the gift that is being offered to us. Drinking through a fire hose does not have to mean being overwhelmed but instead, it is recognizing the abundance that comes through life with Jesus.