“Through the Fire”

Purpose: To inform

Language: Informal
Tone: Serious, Conversational

Thesis Statement: Having faith in God prevented my family to be in harm and provided
us with a new way of living.

Outline:

I. Introduction – Thesis Statement

II. Body
A. Faith in God prevented my family to be in harm.
B. Faith in God provided us with a new way of living.
III. Conclusion

The best incident I had that mostly strengthened my faith in God was when our
house got caught on fire last September 8, 2008. I realized that material things must not
be prioritized over faith in God. I remember it clearly that I was in school when I was told
about the incident. I was very faithful, that I prayed while running for the nearest taxi in
order to rush to the site. Having faith in God prevented my family to be in harm and
provided us with a new way of living.

Faith in God kept me and my family away from harm. When I was told about the
incident, I immediately prayed, saying: “Lord, please keep my family away from harm.”
When I arrived at the site, I saw a team of firefighters battling with the blazing fire. I was
so shocked because I saw the fire blazing through the windows of my room. The fire ate
up the whole second floor of our house. Fortunately, it did not reach the ground floor.
After that, I was so pleased to see my family still in one piece without cuts, bruises,
scratches, nor burns. They were very calm yet they were still in the state of denial. They
could not believe that this misfortune happened to us on such short notice. When dad
saw me, he said: “We’re lucky to be alive. The only things that are gone are the material
things.” After that, I immediately thanked God, saying: “Thank you Lord for sparing my
family and for hearing my prayer. Thank you for providing us realization that material
things are only temporary but your lasts forever.”
 Having faith in God provided us with a new way of living. A month later, our
family gathered to celebrate my birthday. We talked about the incident. We also
discussed about how we live our lives now compared to how we lived before the fire. I
started by saying: “We are more alert in terms of calamities.” My sister added: “We are
more aware about the important values of life.” Dad concluded:” The most important is
that we are more faithful to God, so that’s why we should always be thankful to Him for
giving us a new way of living.”

September 8 is undoubtedly unforgettable for me. My life changed for the better.
I wake up every morning thankful for the blessings that God has showered. Although
everybody tried to stop that incident from occurring, God thought otherwise. He showed
us the light. That’s why whenever I’m down or troubled, I always try my best to have
even just a little faith because I believe in the saying that goes this way: “When there’s a
will, there’s a way.”