We have an outside wood furnace, so we have a huge stack of wood by the house. My husband will cut the wood, load it and stack it. He is a man who can build a fire with no problem, me on the other hand cannot build a fire to save my life. If it were up to me for us to stay warm, we would wake with ice crystals on our eye brows. I can get the flame going, but to keep the fire moving, to keep it lit, that is my problem. Have you ever gone to a conference, left church from an amazing word of God, had a night of studying with a friend, and have just felt the Spirit move in you like nothing before only to have your fire go out soon after? I know as I have gone to Women of Faith with the ladies of our church, have been at church camp, been to teen-conference, listening to amazing speakers, even at church listening to our Pastor speak the words I needed to hear, or served a week in V.B.S, to come home refreshed, renewed, and on fire for Jesus, but then after a while, things tend to get right back to the old me, the world takes over, life is being added by double portions of stress to find myself wanting to be with Jesus as I was before. Its like the Lord spoke to me, straight to my heart, and I say, "Yes, Lord, I hear You", only to ignore Him later, to push aside all I had soaked in days earlier, to allow in things of the world to crush all that God had done to move me toward Him. As our Pastor would say, "Your wood is wet". I don't want my wood to be wet, I want to feel the warmth of the fire, I want to sit close to it, and never have those burning embers going out. I know each day is different, I allow stress and trials to come in, and as I concentrate on those things, I am pushing God aside. There cannot be room for both. If I am concentrating on Him, trusting Him, He will take care of the rest. I don't want to be in the dark, I want to be in the light, to feel His presence with me. As my husband goes out and checks the fire regularly, making sure the smoke is coming out, the wood is burning, and the fire is taking off great, he makes sure all day and all night that fire is moving, because he knows without the fire, we will be cold. Our home stays warm and is lit with love when we have the fire burning strong. When the fire is going out, the cold of the world can come in, and make us shiver to the bone, changing our attitudes. This week, I began my days with listening to the Word. I have had Christian talk radio on, and in the afternoons I have listened to Christian radio, soaking in the music and moving about my day. I can tell you without a doubt, this changes my whole day, no matter what comes, I have a different attitude. I am on fire with the Lord, feeling Him move through me. On those days when I choose to wake thinking upon what the day is bringing, and how much I have to do, I lose sight. When I have my eyes upon me, they are off of Him. I need to keep in check my heart and actions, just as my husband keeps in check our fire. It is a choice, a choice I make daily to live for Him and Him alone. Are you like me and wondering what has happened to the feeling you had last week? Yesterday? Our feelings change day to day, minute by minute, but the Lord can fill us with His joy, giving us a warmth, giving us strength and a new found glory in Him. We are forever changed when we accept Him into our lives, into our hearts. Christianity is a daily choice we make in how we live, our actions and our speech. Listen to this verse I came across this morning: Ephesians 1:13-14 "In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory."
Now, if that doesn't light your fire, I am not sure what can! When we accepted Jesus as our Savior, He filled us with the Holy Spirit, we need no more, we have all of Him. We have an inheritance in Him, our future has been bought with a price, our salvation is secure, and in that and that alone should place such a joy in our hearts that we will forever stand with our eyes upon Him, waiting for His return, and in the meantime, we know He is here with us, in everything! Our beautiful Savior loves us, and wants us to not concentrate on the world, but on Him and His word. When we choose to fill our hearts, our homes and our surroundings with His love, our fire will keep burning. We must change our surroundings, change those things we are allowing in our lives, hearts and minds, and when we do we will see Him clearly, tuning out the world around us, and focusing on Him. Keep that fire burning by keeping close to Him~
