Issue 1548 – Burning Desire – September 12, 2024
When the Lord’s love settles into our hearts and begins to bear fruit, the call to share the truth with others begins to burn deep within us. It becomes a burning desire, an unquenchable fire.
The prophet Jeremiah understood this fire. He was viciously persecuted and sometimes even tried to give up proclaiming the word of the Lord, but he could not.
For whenever I speak, I cry out,I shout, “Violence and destruction!” For the word of the Lord has become for mea reproach and derision all day long.If I say, “I will not mention him, or speak any more in his name,” there is in my heart as it were a burning fire shut up in my bones, and I am weary with holding it in,and I cannot. Jeremiah 20:8-9
Sharing Jesus’s love becomes an unquenchable passion. Some people are mistakenly under the impression that they must serve in specific roles to realize the fruit of that passion.
Not everyone is called to be a prophet, a teacher, a preacher, or an evangelist. The fire burns deep in others, too. They recognize that their gifts can help spread the truth. Many work in the seemingly low-profile roles of the church. They serve as ushers, greeters, administrators, and the like. They work in the nursery, the kitchen, and behind the scenes in a thousand different ways.
They write letters of encouragement to overseas missionaries, encourage and uplift the church at home, and build up and edify quietly with no fanfare and precious little recognition. Prayer warriors lift up those in ministry and those in need ceaselessly.
.All of those roles are vital to the truth being proclaimed and expounded. They are all part of the harvesting process.
I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth. He who plants and he who waters are one, and each will receive his wages according to his labor. For we are God’s fellow workers. You are God’s field, God’s building. 1 Corinthians 3:6-9
We hear people speak of the joy of “leading someone to Christ.” I confess to having some baggage with that term because, really, only the Holy Spirit can do that; we simply help facilitate the process by His grace.
Nonetheless, the harvest happened with the assistance of all the people who planted seeds and watered them along the way. There is much more involved than being there when the step is taken.
The final “decision” to accept Christ may seem sudden for many people, but it is a process. The heart had to be prepared and lovingly tended to. The person had to be prayed for by people who knew him/her and even by many who did not.
Tens, hundreds, perhaps even thousands of little behind-the-scenes divine appointments along the way paved the path for the heart to be ready. Each step was an integral part of the process.
To all of you who serve behind the scenes, sometimes wondering if you even make a difference, let me assure you that your faithfulness impacts eternity and will astound you when you see it. When you meet the people whose eternal soul you had a part in playing, you will be overwhelmed.
Until next time, stay the course and tend the fire in whatever role God has given you.
Be blessed
Hallelu Yah / Praise God
Kevin
Gleanings From The Word
Experience an extraordinary God in ordinary life.
Soli Deo Gloria (For the glory of God alone)
Never let the enemy tell you that you are worthless or insignificant. Your value in God’s eyes is so great that it was worth dying for. You are a blessing to the world. You are so precious to God that his plan for heaven will not be complete without you.
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