Cran-hill Ranch is a beautiful place to spend a week with your grandchildren! From July 7-12 I was the chaplain for their family camping program, which meant I got to stay up there for the week with Diedrick and Annika. On Thursday evening my husband Al and our daughter Acacia joined us for the last day.
I woke up about 6:30 Friday morning and realized Al had given up on getting sleep on our spring loaded mattress, and Acacia was jet-lagged enough she was also awake...sort of. I looked out the camper window and saw them sitting, looking forlornly at a fireless fire pit. There were logs in the pit, and perhaps a wisp of smoke before these silent zombies. Two tired faces, no talking, just staring.
I went out and joined them, assuming they hadn't found where I kept some paper...oh yes, they had used paper, and "self-starting" charcoal to try to ignite carefully positioned logs. Nada! I told them how pathetic they looked and began to laugh until I started to cry. (So much for sympathy.) I was trying to laugh quietly at 6:30 in the morning, and then my snorting got them started.
It wasn't until 3 hours later after the camp store open and Al got some lighter fluid that we finally had a fire.
It all got me thinking about the fire that burns, or smolders, or is evidenced only by a wisp within us. Having worked within the church for a couple of decades I know how hard we often try to ignite a fire in our churches. As a Jesus-followers I also know the ebb and flow of the fire that burns within me.
There are times we think we have all the ingredients for great fire-building in play, only to see that first burst of flame, and then we experience the frustration of realizing the flame is gone before the wood catches on. And we know, don't we that the flame that burns within doesn't depend on us trying harder, or looking more like "Johnny Woodsman." The flame within comes from the Spirit, and John the baptist promised that Jesus would baptize us with this Spirit and with fire. (Matthew 3:11)
We need to do what we can to position ourselves to be in flames with this fire, and to be fanners of the fire: We need to seek, to be open and willing, to let go of what we think it should look like, or feel like. We need to listen for the voice of God, and obey when we hear it. We need to encourage one another and believe that our God is a God of power. We need to long for more than a wisp...we need to fall in love with Jesus, sometimes all over again. We need to stir the passion in our heart.
Can you imagine sitting around the campfire with Jesus and inviting him to ignite our fire? Asking for a fresh dose of the Spirit, our only hope for genuine fire? That is a prayer Jesus is longing to answer!
One more thought...one person where the fire has caught will be the tinder used to set others ablaze. We don't get set on fire just to keep ourselves warm...
Lord don't let me sit on the sidelines with just a wisp of smoke rising from me. Ignite me!
I woke up about 6:30 Friday morning and realized Al had given up on getting sleep on our spring loaded mattress, and Acacia was jet-lagged enough she was also awake...sort of. I looked out the camper window and saw them sitting, looking forlornly at a fireless fire pit. There were logs in the pit, and perhaps a wisp of smoke before these silent zombies. Two tired faces, no talking, just staring.
I went out and joined them, assuming they hadn't found where I kept some paper...oh yes, they had used paper, and "self-starting" charcoal to try to ignite carefully positioned logs. Nada! I told them how pathetic they looked and began to laugh until I started to cry. (So much for sympathy.) I was trying to laugh quietly at 6:30 in the morning, and then my snorting got them started.
It wasn't until 3 hours later after the camp store open and Al got some lighter fluid that we finally had a fire.
It all got me thinking about the fire that burns, or smolders, or is evidenced only by a wisp within us. Having worked within the church for a couple of decades I know how hard we often try to ignite a fire in our churches. As a Jesus-followers I also know the ebb and flow of the fire that burns within me.
There are times we think we have all the ingredients for great fire-building in play, only to see that first burst of flame, and then we experience the frustration of realizing the flame is gone before the wood catches on. And we know, don't we that the flame that burns within doesn't depend on us trying harder, or looking more like "Johnny Woodsman." The flame within comes from the Spirit, and John the baptist promised that Jesus would baptize us with this Spirit and with fire. (Matthew 3:11)
We need to do what we can to position ourselves to be in flames with this fire, and to be fanners of the fire: We need to seek, to be open and willing, to let go of what we think it should look like, or feel like. We need to listen for the voice of God, and obey when we hear it. We need to encourage one another and believe that our God is a God of power. We need to long for more than a wisp...we need to fall in love with Jesus, sometimes all over again. We need to stir the passion in our heart.
Can you imagine sitting around the campfire with Jesus and inviting him to ignite our fire? Asking for a fresh dose of the Spirit, our only hope for genuine fire? That is a prayer Jesus is longing to answer!
One more thought...one person where the fire has caught will be the tinder used to set others ablaze. We don't get set on fire just to keep ourselves warm...
Lord don't let me sit on the sidelines with just a wisp of smoke rising from me. Ignite me!
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