The Funnel

I had an interesting conversation recently about our life mirroring a funnel. There are times when we have a lot of options and choices and directions in our life which make it hard to narrow down. There are other times when those multiplicity of plans start centering on one single path and it seems no matter where you turn it all points in one direction. Then regardless of where we are headed in life, as we come to the end of our lives the funnel takes on a different connotation. We are headed to the entrance to eternity, and that is the "narrow gate," the end of the funnel. 

A funnel is a guide. It channels liquid so as not to spill. If you pour without it for certain things, it makes a mess. How can you get on a train without a destination in mind? A funnel forces commitment. Once you're in the funnel, you just keep heading toward something . . . maybe you're not sure what . . . but its propelling. You can't stand still in a funnel, unless it gets jammed and that's when its time to evaluate why.

The place where this analogy falls flat is the direction. A funnel is downward spiraling. I like to think that it's possible to have it upward spiraling. That God pours His grace into our hearts, especially this Advent season, in order to propel us upward, ever directing our lives more and more towards Him. Where before this Advent we may have been pulled in a million directions, and after it suddenly becomes very very simple indeed. God, and God alone is the goal. 

In these last days leading up to Christmas, may we let go of the rest of it, whatever is cluttering our hearts, and welcome the Infant King with a singleheartedness that carries through into the New Year.