Stoking the Fire


As a child I don't feel as if my family was particularly religious....however, I DO remember going to church:
  • I remember church potlucks and craft fairs.
  • I remember singing in the choir and being in the pageants.
  • I remember the little white nougat candies the pastor's receptionist used to give me, and the donut holes at coffee hour after the service.
  • I remember mom teaching Sunday school and earning a "God Loves Me" pin for memorizing the books of the Bible.
  • And I remember going on mission trips each summer throughout middle and high school.
BUT I also know that somewhere along the line my parents stopped going.  

I often wonder why...

My pastor says he sees it a lot - people who come to church and get energized and full of zeal, only to have that same energy and zeal wane, and then the people end up leaving.

Here is the thing I know from being in scouts when I was young - EVERY FIRE DIES IF IT DOESN"T GET FED.  And feeding a fire requires ACTION and INTENTION on our part.  

So how do you keep your spiritual fire stoked?:

1.  Spend time in worship each day and I don't necessarily mean singing (which my church seems to equate with the word).  By "worship" I mean time spent honoring and praising God for all he is doing in your life right now.  King David said, "I will bless the LORD at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth." (Psalm 34:1).  That's the worship I'm talking about.

2.  Pray.  Real prayer is both practical and powerful.  You don't have to use flowery words - rather, just TALK to GOD.  He loves hearing from you.  Paul's letter to the Philippians says this: "Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God." (Philippians 4:6)

3.  Pray for Others.  It's not all about YOU and spending time in prayer for others blesses them and stokes your own spiritual fire.  "And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests.  With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord's people." (Ephesians 6:18)

4.  Meditate on God's Word.  Yep, I mean crack that Bible open and start reading.  If we want God's fire to burn bright within us, the Word must become the first priority and the final authority in our lives.  Jesus said, "It is the Spirit who gives life.  The flesh profits nothing.  The words I speak to you are spirit and life." (John 6:63)

5.  Surround yourself with other Christians who are passionate about their faith.  American author and entrepreneur Jim Rohn once said, "You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with."  If you want spiritual fire to blaze in YOUR life, you must spend time with people who have it blazing in THEIR lives.  "and let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the day drawing near."  (Hebrews 10:24-25)

6. Practice your faith.  To only read and hear but not follow through with corresponding actions is to live in deception. "Be doers of the word and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves." (James 1:22)












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