The Campfire

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Something has been stirring inside of me this week. It has to do with the memories of the campfire meetings I went to when I was a teenager.

I was sent to Word of Life camp for a week in the summer when I was a teen. I liked the food; I didn't like getting up early and having to report at the flagpole while the bugle was blasting revalry. I can remember only one of the speakers; I cannot remember any of the girls I met. One thing that I can remember quite vividly is going to the Friday night campfire meeting at the end of the week.

There was something different about that night. Those campfires were always huge and hot. The darkness of night and chill in the air didn't matter because the light and warmth of the fire negated it. We would sit on the log-benches and listen to a counsellor speak about dedicating your life to service for Christ. It was a sincere hour while we would reflect on what God may have for our lives. About whether or not we were willing to live for Him and serve Him during our days here on earth.

The time would come when we could go up to the fire and throw a stick on it as a symbol of our desire to burn away our agendas and surrender our lives to Him. Making the decision to go forward was so intense. As you got up from your seat, you could feel the coolness of the air, but as you came closer to the fire, that heat would warm your face like nothing else could do. There was a pile of tinder off to the side and you would pick up that stick, get in line, and then toss it in as you drew close enough to the blaze. It ws clear that this was a choice, a promise, a commitment, a decision.

Then you go home and start to get wrapped up in regular life again. School, responsibilities, relationships, and living all start to make you forget about the promise at the fire. Maybe we forget about the symbolic act as time goes by, but God does not. He set that spark in your heart and won't let it go out. He continues to look over His purpose for you and speaks life to it. He gently reminds us of what is gold and what is chaff. What will burn in the fire of His holiness and what will remain.

All throughout the Bible, God is called a promise-keeper. . . a covenant-maker. His yes means yes. Is there a spark in your heart that will not go out? What promise have you made to God? Is He gently fanning the spark so it will become ablaze for His glory? Quench not His Spirit's promptings and surrender to Him. It's not too late. Don't be afraid; throw your stick on the fire.