Posted:
Based on “Under HIS Influence - The Overflowing Lifestyle”
by Pastor Mark Balmer;
9/5-6/09, Message #MB388;
Daily Devotional #3 -
“Let the Fire Fall”
Preparing the Soil (Introduction): Several years ago I had a very special moment with God while I spent a week at a Christian youth camp. For some reason I couldn’t sleep. Needless to say, I was exhausted.
If you have ever been involved with a youth camp, you know that this is not the place you want to be if you are not on the top of your game! Thursday night something happened. While sleeping I had a dream, or possibly a vision, of God’s work in the camp.
The camp was located in the woods, and the cabins were fairly small cement houses. In my dream I woke up to see the woods on fire. The fire was moving quickly across the land, so quickly in fact, that I had only seconds to react. I did what most of us would do in that situation: I hid. I thought, “Cement houses don’t burn.”
I ducked down below the window, and I felt the fire pass by. I stood up again to look out and saw that everything was consumed around me, but I was still safe. That’s a good dream right? Wrong, it left me feeling regret for some reason. I sat there for several minutes pondering the dream when the Spirit of God spoke to my heart.
He said, “You have been hiding from my fire long enough!” I wept. He was right. My faith had become religion. My walk had become stagnant. I wanted to be consumed by Him again so that I could see Him move in my life.
Planting and Watering the Seed (Growth): At the time of sacrifice, the prophet Elijah stepped forward and prayed: "O LORD, God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel, let it be known today that you are God in Israel and that I am your servant and have done all these things at your command. Answer me, O LORD, answer me, so these people will know that you, O LORD, are God, and that you are turning their hearts back again." Then the fire of the LORD fell and burned up the sacrifice, the wood, the stones and the soil, and also licked up the water in the trench. When all the people saw this, they fell prostrate and cried, "The LORD--he is God! The LORD--he is God!" (1 Kings 18:36-39) God’s holy presence is revealed many times in Scripture in the form of fire. Moses saw it in the bush (Exodus 3:1-2), and Solomon saw it in the temple (2 Chronicles 7:1), just to name a couple of examples. On the day of Pentecost the coming of the Spirit on the believers was symbolized by what looked like “tongues of fire” (Acts 2:3). This fire of God is a consuming power. It changes us when we allow God to have His way with us. I know this, but I hide anyway. What happens when we do this?
Harvesting the Crop (Action/Response): If we allow ourselves to be full of ourselves, then we will hinder God’s work in our lives. Paul has some good advice for us to avoid slowing the fire of God.
Make sure that nobody pays back wrong for wrong, but always try to be kind to each other and to everyone else. Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus. Do not put out the Spirit's fire. (1 Thessalonians 5:15-19)
Those are the secrets to unleashing the work of God in our lives. First, be kind to people. Second, be joyful. Last but not least, give thanks for every circumstance you find yourself in. The result will be not putting out the Spirit’s fire in our lives.
If you find yourself longing for the work of God in your life, then pray that God’s fire will fall and shatter the things you hold onto. Just imagine what would happen if you glowed like Jesus did while He was ministering.
No wonder Jesus could say to us, “You are the light of the world!” (Matthew 5:14) You will burn brightly for the King!
Cultivating (Additional Reading): Acts 9:1-22
TCH
