Let It Burn
Tails from the Farm
Luke
12:49-51 I've come to start a fire on this
earth—how I wish it were blazing right now! I've come to change
everything, turn everything right side up—how I long for it to be
finished! Do you think I came to smooth things over and make everything nice?
Not so. I've come to disrupt and confront!
Fire
is pretty amazing. The same spark that heats a home in the winter can
burn that house to the ground. That’s why those who handle it must
do so with the utmost preparation and care. Speaking of fire, I have
always been intrigued with the “controlled” field fires.
Often I would pass by a field ablaze and ask my wife, “Do you really
think everything is ok?” I didn’t quite understand all the
safety features that go into burning off a field, nor did I comprehend the
reason for the procedure.
That
has all changed. Just the other day, I got to experience “the
burn” first hand. First, I learned that the field is plowed in such
a way as to contain the fire, so that it doesn’t “jump” and
burn other areas or items. Next, I realized the reason for the
burn. When a field has unwanted stuff (rye, cheat, crab grass, etc.) that
can hinder an excellent yield during harvest, burning becomes an option.
But here’s something I noticed that got my attention; as I set fire to
undesirables in the field, the dead stuff went up in a puff of smoke. But
in the areas where the weeds and grass were green, they stymied the
fire. As a matter of fact, where the green was real thick, it looks like
the fire just went around it!
Now,
I still have a lot to learn about the burn, but one thing stands out in my mind
as an applicable lesson. Daily, you and I are doing deeds and sowing
seeds. And although God’s love for us is unconditional, He is a Father;
He will and does reward our work. The Bible teaches that one day all will
stand before Him and give an account of what they have done with the life he gave
them. I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to wait that
long to find out if I’ve got “stuff” that needs to be
burned off so the good seeds can grow. All you’ve got to do is ask
Him to “try” your life by the fire of His Spirit. If there is
something that needs to go, His presence can and will reveal it. My
advice; whatever it is, let it burn! There is nothing in this world
more important than yielding a good harvest for the Father.
Lorenzo
Biblical Meditation: I Corinthians 3:13 Every
man's work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it
shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man's work of what sort
it is.