Feeling Chilly in the Fire Tunnel

I went through my first fire tunnel last night. "Fire Tunnel?" you ask. Was this some kind of rite-of-passage deep within the Amazonian jungle? No, my friends, it took place at a local charismatic church and it involved two lines of pastors facing each other(kind of like a soccer tunnel) whom would pray and bless those going through the tunnel.

I attended the tail end of a conference at the church because I wanted to hear Heidi Baker speak, a lady who has an amazing ministry in Mozambique and is a hero of mine. I had been planning on leaving after her message as I knew that sometimes these kinds of services can stretch on indefinitely, but as the build up for the "fire-tunnel" increased after her moving message, I decided to stick around and experience it.

After waiting in line for an hour and a half, I found my heart pumping as I approached the stage. People would step into the tunnel and collapse; some were dragged off to the side and others would be handed through the tunnel on wobbly legs. The woman behind me said, "Get ready for the wildest ride of your life."

"Good grief," I thought to myself. "What's going to happen to me? Am I truly going to collapse in the spirit like I've seen so many other people do in the past?" I stepped into it, only to have a man grab my shoulders and breathe into my face. He handed me off to a woman who grabbed my stomach(thank goodness this was not the man) and started chanting "Fire in the belly, fire in the belly". I kept walking through the tunnel, nervously smiling at the men and women that would grab me, rub my head, say a blessing over me, and call for "more joy" for me. The recovering people- pleaser part me of me wanted to do something, but I just kept walking. It ended with a man forcefully embracing me, swaying me back and forth, and praying
something over me. I hurriedly went down the stage stairs, pushed my way through the dancing and rejoicing people, and fled the building, fearing that the woman was going to ask me about my experience.

The long and short of it...I felt absolutely nothing. I was a little disappointed, to tell you the truth. Do I think the whole thing was a farce? No, I think like most things, some people were having a genuine experience while others were faking it. The whole experience bears a little more personal reflection. If anyone has ever seen or experienced a fire tunnel, or has other opinions, I welcome your comments.