The Bubble
Baby Girl,
Tell Me about your dream.
I was constantly coming up against situations where I would be stuck and I couldn’t go any farther. One day, I met this really odd person who tried to tell me about some really weird contraption that would somehow magically help me go anywhere I needed to go.
There were rules and guidelines, and it just seemed like more trouble than it was worth… but then I would notice that this person and his weird contraption didn’t seem to run into walls or obstacles that got in his way.
He had long ago stopped trying to tell me about his weird contraption because every time he did, I just looked at him with a look of judgmental skepticism that said, “You’re weird and I’m not interested.”
One day, I saw him off in the distance and he was not coming in my direction but I was desperate, so I ran after him. As I was trying to chase him down, I was thinking about how stupid his contraption looked and how ridiculous I would look in it, but I didn’t care anymore. I was tired of running into walls and obstacles.
His contraption looked sort of like one of those clear plastic balls that you can take the lid off, put a hamster inside of it, and let him run around on the floor; but, while the contraption was round and you could see right through it, it was more like a transparent bubblegum bubble. It was flexible and fluid and inside it was almost like he was weightless.
It’s hard to describe but it was almost like when they show an astronaut walking in outer space and their feet almost don’t touch the ground because there’s no gravity, yet they stay upright. He moved like a human… everything like a human, but not. There was no effort and he just looked so happy in that stupid little contraption.
Running breathlessly to catch up with him, I realized that my efforts were in vain. I was never gonna catch up, so I stopped, bent over with my hands on my knees trying to catch my breath, and I breathlessly yelled, ”Hey!”
He didn’t hear me, so I yelled louder, “HEY! STOP. PLEASE STOP.”
I didn’t think he could hear me but then I noticed the contraption was slowing down, and he turned his head and looked at me. I let out a quick laugh of relief, and I stood there with my hands on my knees, catching my breath while he came my way.
When he got close, he looked at me with the same look of judgmental skepticism I had always given him. I looked up, still begging my breath to return to normal and said, “I’m sorry. I know I have not been kind when you have tried to explain your contraption to me and I have judged you because, honestly, you look so weird in that ridiculous looking bubble but you always genuinely look happy. You come up to the same walls and obstacles that I do yet, somehow, almost magically, you seem to end up on the other end of the obstacles that are impossible to get around. I’m tired of doing everything the hard way and I wanna know where I can get my own bubble.”
He looked into my eyes for what felt like an eternity; back and forth between each eye as though he were searching my soul. I finally just looked at the ground, fairly certain that he was not going to help me. Why would he? Every time I saw him I gave him dirty looks and judged him.
Finally, he broke the awkward silence and said, “Okay.” That’s it. Just okay.
I looked up curiously at him and said, “Okay?”
He said, “Okay, I will tell you, but this is the last time I will tell you. You have a choice to make. I will explain to you how to get your own bubble but this isn’t something you put on to get through obstacles and then take off. It changes everything and yet changes nothing.
You will still live in a world full of challenges and obstacles yet you will joyfully and peacefully get to the other side of them. I have never once regretted my bubble but, just as you have always looked at me funny…”
“I didn’t want to… I wasn’t trying to… it just… looks…”
“Yes. I know. Weird. Not normal. You don’t often see people wearing them.”
“No, you don’t.”
“Have you ever seen someone in a bubble who looks like they’re working really hard?”
“No.”
“Have you ever seen someone in a bubble who seems bothered by the obstacles in their path?”
“No.”
“Have you ever seen someone in a bubble who seems bothered by the judgmental way that people look at them?”
“Well, when I stopped you just now, the way you looked at me… I was fairly certain you weren’t gonna talk to me because of how I’ve judged you.”
“I just took a moment to search your eyes. I was looking for sincerity. There are plenty of people who ask me questions the way you would question a circus performer or a magician. They want you to remove the veil so that you can see it’s just a trick - there’s really no such thing as magic. Very few would consider a bubble of their own.
Getting a bubble of your own will cost you everything.”
“What do you mean?”
“There are a lot of things that you cannot take with you into a bubble.”
The odd little man stretched out his arm and pushed through the bubble. His hand never made it to the other side of the bubble but, if I were to hand him something, he could grasp it and take it into the bubble with him. He reached out and grabbed the backside of a chair and, when he sat down on the chair, he remained inside the bubble. It just sort of formed an outline around the chair. He picked up a piece of toast I hadn’t seen sitting on the little table and took a bite.
Searching my eyes again, he asked if I was willing to accept a hug. I was curious how that could even happen - there was a bubble between us. I reluctantly said, “Okay,” and he stood up, walked toward me, and embraced me. There was still a bubble between us and yet, other than visually, there was no awareness of the bubble. It was there. I could see it was there. It looked odd yet he was able to do everything I was able to do.
I was confused. “I don’t understand,” I said. “You said that I can’t take certain things into the bubble with me and yet you reached out and took food and ate it, you grabbed a chair and you sat in it, and you embraced me. What are you unable to take in the bubble with you?”
“Pride. If I started to care about your opinion about this bubble, it would disappear and I would look like you. In order to be in this bubble, I cannot be concerned about anyone’s opinions of the bubble.”
“What else can’t go in the bubble?”
“Greed. I am fully aware that the One who gave me the bubble gave me everything I have. My belongings are kept outside of the bubble. If the One who gave me the bubble asks me to give of what I own, I understand that He will never take from me more than I have to give, so I share freely.”
“Yeah, but if you give everything away, then you just become a leech on society because other people have to take care of you.”
“The One who gave me the bubble has never put me in a position of lack. In fact, when He asks me to give and I do, it almost seems like a selfish act because I always end up better off than I was before.”
“Okay, so if I get one of these bubbles, I have to get rid of pride and greed. That doesn’t seem so bad.”
“Well, when you let go of pride, you lose your right to strong emotions. You realize that almost every strong emotion you have is tied to pride and greed. When you let go of pride and greed, it is nearly impossible to be angry, sad, or confused.
There is a humility in choosing life in the bubble. It is an acknowledgment of your natural inability to overcome obstacles and get through walls.
Some people will look at you like you’re a weirdo, but some will be genuinely impressed. It feels good when people are impressed by your abilities but, as soon as you accept the praise of man as though you somehow deserve it, the bubble disappears and the weight of your own body on your own two feet feels heavy.
The longer you live in your bubble, the weaker your natural body will become. You will immediately realize you have stepped out of the bubble because you will no longer have the natural muscle to hold your own weight anymore.”
“What do you mean?”
“You know how astronauts who spend too much time in the weightless atmosphere of outer space… you know what, look up what happens when an astronaut returns to earth.”
- According to Google AI -
When astronauts return to Earth, they experience a range of physical and mental adjustments as their bodies re-adapt to gravity. This includes issues with balance and coordination, muscle and bone loss, and cardiovascular changes. There's also a period of rehabilitation and medical monitoring to help them reacclimate.
Physical Adjustments:
Gravity Sickness: The body's readjustment to Earth's gravity can cause "gravity sickness," with symptoms like dizziness, nausea, and facial swelling due to fluid shifts.
Neurovestibular Challenges: Astronauts may experience difficulty with balance, coordination, and maintaining a stable gaze due to the ear's vestibular system needing to readjust to gravity.
Muscle and Bone Loss: Muscles, especially those used for posture, weaken in microgravity, and bone density decreases, increasing the risk of fractures.
Cardiovascular Changes: The cardiovascular system, which adapts to the fluid shifts in space, needs to readjust to Earth's gravity.
Eye and Brain Changes: Some astronauts experience changes in the eyes and brain due to fluid shifts and increased intracranial pressure.
Skin Changes: Astronauts may experience changes in skin, including a softening of the skin on the soles of their feet ("baby feet").
Psychological Adjustments: Behavioral Changes: Astronauts may experience fatigue, stress, and sleep disturbances.
The Overview Effect: Some astronauts report experiencing the "overview effect," a cognitive shift where they gain a new perspective on Earth and humanity's place in the universe.
Rehabilitation:
Medical Supervision: Astronauts undergo medical assessments and monitoring upon their return.
Rehabilitation Programs: Rehabilitation includes physical therapy, exercise, and other therapies to restore muscle strength, balance, and cardiovascular function.
Readaptation Timeline:
It can take weeks or even months for astronauts to fully readjust to Earth's environment, with some changes like bone density taking years to fully recover.
“Wow! It looks like a painful process, returning to earth after being weightless in space.”
“Yes. The same is true of the bubble. If you choose to live in a bubble and then decide the bubble is not for you, you will have a very uncomfortable time trying to build up the muscle and endurance to do life on your own again. Very few people who go to all the trouble of letting go of everything that is required to experience the weightless existence of the bubble go back to life outside of the bubble; but, some do and it is one of the saddest things you could imagine. Many who do eventually find life intolerable. Some will return to the bubble but, sadly, some succumb to the hopelessness of life outside the bubble and become no more.”
“Like they kill themselves?”
“Life outside of the bubble is challenging and the walls and obstacles are hard but, for the self-reliant people who have always done life that way, it’s just a reality of life.
The one who has lived the weightless life in the bubble knows the freedom of the bubble. If they decide the freedom of the bubble is not worth fully surrendering self-will, pride, and greed, they will experience life to be harder than before they ever put the bubble on because in the bubble their outer man became weak.”
“What is this bubble called and where can I get one?”
“Are you certain, knowing the weight of this decision, that you want one?”
“I can experience the joy of one in the bubble, the weightlessness on my feet, and the untroubled feeling when I face obstacles and walls in my path? Why would I not choose that?”
“In Christ, you can have all this and more.”
“You said there are things that can make my bubble disappear and then I would be faced with my own weakness. How do I know what I can and can’t do in Christ… in the bubble?”
“The Bible. Read it, and when you’re done, read it again. Meditate on it. You can discover what it means to live ‘in Christ’ in the Bible. As you get more and more comfortable in the bubble, you will discover that many of the things you previously enjoyed, you can still do, but you will be doing them ‘in Christ.’ Your reasoning for doing them will be different and you will likely enjoy doing them more.
Some of the things you THOUGHT you enjoyed will lose all their appeal.
Some of the people who used to ADORE you will not want to associate with you anymore. Many will judge you. A few, on occasion, will join you.
You will be acutely aware of those who claim to have a bubble but are trudging through life carrying their own weight. You can’t do anything about that unless they ask. To offer advice about the bubble unsolicited comes from pride and that act in itself could compromise your own bubble.”
“I see why not many people have a bubble. Sounds complicated and hard to keep.”
“Actually, it’s QUITE simple. It’s easy. The most challenging part is surrendering self… but that’s also the VERY best part.”
“How do I get my bubble?”
“Ask the Bubble Maker, and remember: inside the bubble, life is weightless. If you feel weight or struggle, you’ve stepped out of the bubble. The sooner you realize you’re out, the easier it is to get back in.
If my left toe gets out, I feel it! You couldn’t pay me enough to lure me out of my bubble for even a minute.
Gotta go. Good luck!”
Then I woke up.
Well Little One, what do you think?
I want to live in the bubble.
Most days, are you aware you’re already in it?
I haven’t seen it.
You can’t see it. It’s in the spirit. The man in the bubble - you saw his bubble in the spirit. Naturally, he just looked like a man. When you looked at him like he was odd or weird, it was that his Christlike nature was so different from the self-willed people around him, he appeared different.
In Christ, you don’t physically look any different. No one can physically SEE that you’re in Christ, which is why we talked the other day about you complimenting that music minister on appearing to be worshipping in the spirit.
The only one who can truly SEE if you’re in the bubble is Me. The only one who can FEEL if you’re in the bubble or not is you. You will know you’re out of your bubble if life begins to feel weighty or your soul begins to feel troubled.
You ARE in the bubble, Little One. Just keep reading the Word and you will become acutely aware of those moments where you leave the bubble behind. Remember: it’s a quick turn and repent - and you’re back in the bubble again.
You’ve got two months of podcasts to record today. Get to it!
LOVE,
Daddy
Colossians 3:10-11
