A Blaze of Glory
- Capital Fellows
- 4 hours ago
- 4 min read
By John Kyle
In twelve years of leading the Capital Fellows program, I thought I could say, "I've seen it all." After all, I have seen the growth, the friendships, the breakthroughs, the ups and downs, and the victories and the struggles. Well, the last night of our beach retreat brought an entirely new experience for me: an evacuation.
For eleven of those twelve years, the Capital Fellows have gone to the same wonderful beach house in Duck, North Carolina to celebrate a year well done. This year, around 1:00am on our last night, one of the fellows knocked on my door saying there was a house fire in the neighborhood. I imagined a little smoke, maybe a little flame. As I stepped onto our deck and felt the heat, I realized this was not little at all. The beach house two doors down was completely engulfed in flames. The police and fire department had not yet arrived.
First question: Are the people ok? Yes! We learned that the occupants got out safely.
Second question: Now what? The wind was blowing pretty hard, causing embers and burning bits of the house to blow onto our street, into the trees and onto the nearby houses. We needed to leave. We were not in immediate danger, but a spreading fire would have been a serious problem. So, the fellows quickly gathered their essentials. We got into our cars and drove to a nearby hotel for a couple hours of sleep.
We returned around 8:00am the next morning to gather the rest of our things. The volunteer fire department was still on the scene spraying water onto the smoking remains of that house. It was completely gutted, along with four vehicles in the driveway. Fortunately, none of the other homes sustained any visible damage.
As I drove home from the beach, I kept the radio off for the first hour or so. I couldn't stop thinking about the fire fighters. There are so many lessons here, too many to really do justice to them all. Like Jesus in John 13, the live-action parable in which he tells his own story by washing the disciples feet, these firemen showed us how it is done.
They showed us what it is to live a sacrificial life for the benefit of others. Rather than remaining in the comfort of their beds, they willingly and intentionally stepped into the heat and danger. They came prepared. They put on their gear, the heavy and burdensome clothing of the fire fighting trade. Recognizing the urgency and danger of the situation, they did not waste time. They got to work and finished the job. With remarkable strength and stamina, they endured the hardship of a large and hot fire. When the job was finished, they left without much reward or fanfare.
My dear Capital Fellows of Season 18, these fire fighters gave us a gift in this real-life parable. In a sense, they are reminding us that we too are fire fighters of sorts. Our trust is not in comfort, but in Jesus, the One who is making all things new, even from the ashes. Because of him, we can go into hard places without hesitation. We can face pain and discomfort. We can finish the job and leave without much reward. All of this is true because he is our Strength, our Shield and our Reward.
Fellows, I am very proud of all of you, not simply because you were calm and brave in this crazy moment at the beach, but because of your good work all year long. As our year together comes to a close, I am excited to see what God does in and through you. And, I am looking forward to the eternal friendships he has started this year. Well done!
John Kyle is the director of the Capital Fellows program. He lives in Loudoun County, Virginia with his wife, Shirley.
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About Capital Fellows. Capital Fellows is an advanced leadership and discipleship program for recent college graduates. Through graduate courses, a paid internship, one-on-one mentoring, and many leadership and community service opportunities, fellows develop and apply their gifts in real-world situations while learning to integrate a Christian worldview into all areas of life. Capital Fellows is a unique opportunity to live and work in the Washington DC area and to be an active member of a supportive community that seeks to serve the city with the love of Christ. It is also a unique opportunity to get hands-on experience in the workplace while deeply exploring God’s design for us as workers and contributors to human flourishing.
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We have closed the book on the 18th year of the Capital Fellows program. Some fellows are staying with the same employers, some are taking new jobs, some are heading to graduate school. All of them are staying in the DC area for the foreseeable future. Please pray that God would continue to bless them as they apply all they have learned this year about vocation, servanthood, community and leadership.
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