Month: October 2024

Night and the Kitchen (Angel in the Kitchen)

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Some little time ago the sun disappeared behind the line of trees bordering our home, and now the whole world — or so it seems — has been plunged into darkness. Night has fallen. Silent and impenetrable, like a heavy suffocating shroud.

In our kitchen, also, darkness covers the countertops and veils the cabinets. We can easily imagine the appliances all slumbering, each of them tucked away … waiting for a new dawn.

And yet, there’s a ghostly light, glowing faint and green. It manifests itself as a set of cryptic numbers, which appear to hover motionless against the night … until a single digit changes … advancing the time, keeping track of the long hours before the faithful sun reappears in the east.

“2:10 a.m.” announces the clock above the range. Unseen by us, Sparky (the gas range) has been keeping watch. While most of the surrounding world sleeps, he lies awake, maintaining the optimum pressure of propane in his lines, ready to flame on at a moment’s notice, should one of us need him in the wee hours. Perhaps he’s contemplating the fried eggs he’ll help to prepare in the morning; or perhaps he simply lies quietly, sensing the presence of another appliance huddled in the darkness, biding its time till breakfast.

Sparky flashes the time — 2:11 a.m. — to his patient kitchen mate, Mr. Keurig, who’s been keeping the water in his reservoir nice and hot, lest he be unprepared to make us cocoa after we suddenly awaken from a bad
dream. He gently whispers a prayer that sounds like the swish of an angel’s wings; and Sparky smiles, knowing his friend has had too much caffeine!

From across the room a dull groan pierces the darkness, followed by a startling ker-chunk!  2:12 a.m…. Fridgey has been making ice all along, while preserving the foods entrusted to his care! Like Sparky and Mr. Keurig, he never sleeps. He stays on duty 24/7, patiently waiting, preparing, preserving, and protecting throughout the night.

These angels in the kitchen are always ready to spring into action at a moment’s notice. They understand we need them, and never need a lot of coaxing to meet our needs!

In life, too, “night” has a way of creeping in. We suddenly find ourselves facing difficult problems, and the future starts to look black. The Son (of God) seems to have disappeared for a time, and we can sense a spiritual darkness falling around us “Silent and impenetrable, like a heavy suffocating shroud.” We feel alone, perhaps even fearful, and we begin to doubt everything we know and believe in.

But we’re never alone in the dark hours of life. God is always present — even if we can’t see Him or feel His presence! And like those faithful appliances in the kitchen, He’s always working on our behalf, looking out for our best interests, constantly able and ready to “supply all your needs from his glorious riches, which have been given to us in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:19 NLT) And (as Mr. Keurig seems to know) He’s only a whispered prayer away!

Our Heavenly Father encourages each of us to “Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things….” (Jeremiah 33:3 AKJV) Furthermore, He’s always listening and answering — 24/7 — because He never sleeps. (Psalm 121:4 NLT) Instead, God quietly and patiently continues to care for us throughout our darkest hours.

So when the night closes in, call out to the Creator of the Universe. Like Fridgey, Sparky and Mr. Keurig, the Lord is always present, always
vigilant, always “preparing, preserving, and protecting [us] throughout the night.” Never lose faith, and never forget: “The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it.” (John 1:5 NLT)

A new day will soon dawn. Start it — and every day — by looking up! Look to God both day and night, remembering He’s always on the job! Follow the example of the Psalmist, who wrote: “I lift up my eyes to the hills…. [Because] My help comes from the LORD. …He who keeps you will not slumber. Behold, he who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep.” (Psalm 121:1-4 ESV)

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The Great Mystery of Rejection (Encouragement for Creators)

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For most of us, the hows and whys of rejection remain a mystery. It’s not always about talent, or the lack of it. Timing and taste are assuredly factors. Fate and fickleness also seem to play a part.

In 1882, a bored, young doctor began to dabble in writing. His earliest pieces were, by his own admission, largely embarrassing efforts; but he stuck with his new hobby and, a few years later, completed his first novel, which he promptly and proudly sent out to a publisher. Unfortunately, he lived during an extremely barbaric period of history when there were no photocopiers, and his only copy of the manuscript was lost in the mail!

Undeterred, the good doctor continued to scribble his thoughts, and soon completed his second novel, which he promptly and proudly mailed off. No, this time he took the precaution of keeping a copy. Actually, he made several copies, so he was able to send the novel to several different publishers. A few weeks later he received by return post, several different rejections — enough, in fact, to convince him to shelve the book.

Finally, in 1886, he finished a third novel. The first three publishers he approached rejected it immediately, one of them stating that the tale is “Neither long enough for a serial nor short enough for a single story.” The fourth publisher agreed to print the tale, in one of the many popular magazines of the time, and paid him the meager sum of £25 — less than most magazines paid for a single short story. But at least his third novel did see print. For one whole month it was on the newsstands, but the next month it was gone and forgotten.

So the young doctor didn’t immediately quit his day job. He continued seeing his patients and continued to dream of writing full time. Ironically, he didn’t consider the publication of this first novel a turning point in his career. He was thoroughly pleased with the novel, and he genuinely cared for its two main characters, but he knew that as writer, he had a long way to go. His turning point, or so he thought at the time, came when he was asked to write the English translation of a German article entitled “Testing Gas Pipes for Leakage.”

Not very glamorous, but the editor had approached him, and commissioned him to do the piece. Was he on his way to being a real writer at last? Did he have a bright future penning articles about leaky pipes? Yes and no, respectively.

In 1989, Lippincott’s Monthly Magazine asked Sir Arthur Conan Doyle to write a second novel featuring the now immortal characters of Sherlock Holmes and his trusted associate Dr. John H. Watson, M.D. Doyle penned The Sign of Four as a follow-up to his first published novel, A Study in Scarlet, the one for which he was so handsomely paid £25. The rest of the story is literary history: four novels, 56 short stories, as well as any number of unauthorized adventures called pastiches; movies and television shows, dating from the era of silent films all the way up to the recent BBC hit Sherlock and ABC’s Elementary.

So there you have it: one of the most successful and well-known literary characters rose up like a phoenix from the ashes of Doyle’s rejected novel. We’re all grateful that somebody was willing to publish the first adventure of the World’s Greatest Consulting Detective. It’s yet another case that proves the point: the mystery of rejection is strange indeed!

“The steps of a man are established by the Lord, And He delights in his way. When he falls, he will not be hurled headlong, Because the Lord is the One who holds his hand.” (Psalm 37:23-24 NASB)

Read Tom’s story “The Deadly Sin of Sherlock Holmes” in the hardcover anthology Detective Thrillers Short Stories

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