Yesterday’s Gathering went a little bit differently to how I had imagined. I had my message prepared and was all ready to go with it, but I really felt God told me to put it aside … to get rid of my agenda, as He had something else that He wanted to share with us. Part of our journey is learning to hear His voice and be willing to do “other” than what we want or think.
Let me unpack it a little bit more for you about what I felt He was saying: God is wanting to increase the fire in us (the power, the heat, the brightness) to be contagious to those around us with the full Gospel of Jesus Christ. He wants a people that burn with a passion for Him and for His name, and burn brightly to make an impact for Him in the world we are in.
Luke 3:16 says this, “John answered them all, saying, “I baptize you with water, but he who is mightier than I is coming, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire.”
Being around a camp fire or a log fire at home is a beautiful experience and can be mesmerising and captivating to watch. When we were in Sydney on the weekend, we were staying at a relative’s home. We were sitting in front of the log fire with our 8 year old twin nephews who were keeping the fire stoked (very carefully, I might add). We were enjoying sitting there; loving the heat from the fire, the warmth; we were mesmerised by the movement of the flames, the brightness. The fragrance of the fire lingered – it permeated the house so all who were there, knew that the fire was on.
This is God’s heart for us – that we are lit up by Him, that we on FIRE for Him, that we let Him stoke the fire in us for His glory and that we, in turn, light up those around us ….in the words of life that we speak over them, in the way we love, in the way we release Kingdom.
I am going to be expanding on this next Sunday (28th August) as we believe that this is part of God’s journey for us – to be a shining light … a fire that burns brightly, a city on a hill that can’t be hidden.