Fire

I am come to send fire on the earth; and what will I, if it be already kindled?

When disciples surrender to the mystery of the fire of the Spirit that burns within, when we submit to the truth that we reach life only through death, when we acknowledge that the grain of wheat must vanish into the ground, that Jonah must be buried in the belly of the whale, that the alabaster jar of self must be broken if others are to perceive the sweet fragrance of Christ, when we respond to the call of Jesus, which is not come to a church meeting but “Come to me,” then the limitless power of the Holy Spirit will be unleashed with astounding force. The discipline of the secret will be a compelling sign to the Church and the culture. The body of Christ will be plunged into a revolution.

Our God is a consuming fire!

The rule of His reign is not a matter of words but of power, a source of transformation and information. The spiritual life is simply life itself lived with the vision of faith.

From the book, Storytelling, Imagination and Faith, William Bausch shares this.

“An old Mississippi country preacher believed in his bones that the Word of God is a two –edged sword. One Sunday morning he mounted the pulpit and prayed: ‘Oh Lord, give thy servant this mornin’ the eyes of the eagle and the wisdom of the owl; connect his soul with the gospel telephone in the central skies; illuminate his brow with the Sun of Heaven; possess his mind with love for the people; turpentine his imagination; grease his lips with possum oil; electrify his brain with lightning’ of the Word; put perpetual motion in his arms; fill him plumb full of dynamite of The glory; anoint him all over with the kerosene of salvation, and set him on fire.”

Rich