Of Faith and Fire

               Saturday, we had my youth group over. It also just happened to be a friend’s birthday. A slice of cake had been bought and we stuck a pink candle on top, lit it, and then brought it outside. Saturday’s weather was a mess though. Sun, then rain, then sun again. That’s how the weather here works. There was a breeze and while we were singing, the flame flickered and died. It was out for a couple, breathless seconds before it decided decided to come back.

               Me being me, I thought about it. What if we’re candles and our faith is our flame? When we choose to believe, that’s when the lighter or match sets us on fire. But sometimes, our faith can flicker. There’s wind, cold and fierce and it can be hard to stand against. Wind can chill you to your bones, causing them to ache and you to shiver and shake. Your warmth, your fire, seems nonexistent. Your faith seems to have died.

               Two people were raised from the dead. The candles had melted down to nothing but they were brought back to life again. Lives, not faith. If that can happen, your faith can come back again. We were made to be light in a world of darkness, made to shine and guide. As believers and as a church, a unified body, we can be a bonfire, a place where people can warm themselves.

               The wind sucks sometimes. That cold in your bones can fill your body and sometimes, that flame can die. However, it’s not hopeless. God will not turn away and forget because you slipped a little on the straight and narrow. You can never fall too far or lose your fire forever. Your faith can flicker back and you can glow again. No matter how often you trip or how far you fall, you can always get back up again.

Fire is a fragile thing when faced with wind but fire is the atomic bomb of nature. It can consume and spread over miles, destroying everything in its path. Maybe you’re flame is small but that doesn’t mean you can’t create a forest fire. Maybe your voice is small but that doesn’t mean you can’t start a revolution. Fire is a weapon, your faith is a weapon. Because of Jesus’ death, you have the power to burn and destroy anything that comes against you.

Any fire that has burnt out can come back again. Any spirit that died can come back. You can never fall too far. Instead, you can come back to life and burn hotter and brighter then you did before and use the wind to travel instead of letting it bring you down. Jesus is the light of the world and that same light is burning in us. So burn and never lose hope.