Afire

Who doesn't love a summer night, under the stars, near a warm fire? Whether it's a more soothing atmosphere of a couple adults relaxing together around a small campfire, or a group of teenagers talking it up around a huge bonfire; it seems that summer nights need a fire to set the stage.

No matter which it is, the same fire always starts somewhere... a small pile of sticks that we call kindle. God is showing me how similar this is to our relationship with Him!

Let me start with the basics:

1. Kindle - going back to that small pile of sticks and twigs; God has kindle in all of us, each and every child born, is birthed with kindle inside them.
2. Sparks - Abba begins to strike that flint together as an array of sparks fall on the kindle; soon, it will catch flame.
3. Flames - They may be small, but God will continue to spark them and add more small sticks as He brings strength to this fire's humble beginning.
4. Growth - as the flames get stronger, larger as well as thicker pieces of wood can be added to the fire. Soon that pile of sticks is a campfire that's burning steadily.
5. More growth - but Abba doesn't stop there... if we seek Him and continue to hunger for Him, God will add more and more wood until, before we know it, we're a blazing bonfire!

Can you imagine, can you picture, this? God takes our hunger and feeds it; He tends to our relationship and grows it until it's no longer just obvious to us... the warmth of the love burning within us is obvious to everyone around us!!

There are two things I hope you take note of.

1) I never mentioned adding paper or anything extra to the fire. Think about what happens when you throw a wad of newspaper onto a fire... it will burn bright, but only briefly.

God showed me that this is like the spiritual high that is so often sought in churches. Instead of seeking Him for Him, many just seek the "feeling." Pentecostals are the worst with this (hey hey hey, calm down. I consider myself more of a Pentecostal! I'm just being honest). A fire wont last if all that it's being fed is paper. Thus, no relationship with God will last if all it is built off of is spiritual highs.

And 2) while physical fires are built in a small amount of time, it's not going to be that way with our relationship with God. It takes time to build and no matter what stage we're in, there are going to be days where the wind shifts and all we can see is smoke. When that happens with a regular fire do we all shrug our shoulders and go inside because we assume the fire died out? No! We wait it out because we know the fire is there, we just can't see it currently.


I stopped seeking for awhile because of how much smoke was in my eyes; I didn't even realize there was no fire for smoke to be coming from. He had to take the time to stir up those coals for the few that were faintly burning; now, as He is so graciously sparking this once-dying fire inside me again (Hallelujah!), I urge you all...

Don't stand in the smoke. It will eventually blind you. Get down on your knees and let the smoke go over you, because God is still there. So long as we cry out in hunger (even if it's just a hunger to have any hunger!) He will continue to build this fire. One day, you will be a bonfire, but even then... He'll have so much further to bring you, because there is no end to God's love (and even then, there will be smokey days! It's about what you do with those days).

And if you've never had that kindle sparked, then I pray you find the real truth to spark it. There are a lot of lies out there today, a lot of gimmicks that promise to burn... but die out quickly. Yahweh is TRUTH; His word has been tested and is unfailing (Proverbs 3:5)! I pray that you will be brought into this burning, terrifying, thrilling, light of His mercy and great love.