Rebuild Your Spiritual Fire

“For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands” 2 Timothy 1:6 (NIV)

I absolutely love a good campfire. It’s so peaceful and mesmerizing. I love the crackling sounds, the dancing and sometimes colorful flames, and even the glowing embers as the fire starts to die down. It’s always a little sad when the fire goes out, and all I see is just a gray pile of ashes. There are times in life that I feel like those leftover ashes have mimicked my spiritual life…those times when I don’t really feel like I’m “on fire” anymore.

Have you experienced this too? Has your spiritual progress, growth, or walk with God at times seemed to have waned or died off a bit? Does it seem like God is more distant or that you are farther from God? The good news is that the fire or passion you may have once had is not really gone. It’s still IN you (see verse below). The embers are there. It just needs to be fanned back into a flame.

“For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is IN you through the laying on of my hands” 2 Timothy 1:6 (NIV)

“That is why I would remind you to stir up (rekindle the embers of, fan the flame of, and keep burning) the [gracious] gift of God, [the inner fire] that is in you by means of the laying on of my hands [with those of the elders at your ordination].” 2 Timothy 1:6 (AMPC)

Embers are still hot enough to catch flame

This makes me think of a campfire that has burned all night. The next morning it appears to be out because there are no more flames, and it’s covered in gray ashes. BUT… with a little bit of fanning and stoking, the addition of some more tinder, and then gradually adding larger pieces of wood the embers spark, then flame, then eventually roar.

When it comes to warning about embers still being hot enough to catch flame, my mother-in-law always shares the story of when my husband, Eric, was a toddler. Their family had gone camping. At one point during the camping trip Eric ran barefoot right through where their campfire had been. There were no flames, just an ashy pile, so I’m sure to a child it didn’t look dangerous. However, that quick jaunt through the flameless, gray-tipped embers landed Eric in the emergency room putting an end to their camping trip. He had to have his feet bandaged up and ended up having to be carried or crawl around because he couldn’t walk on them for a while.

There’s a lesson about our spiritual walk in this campfire analogy. When it looks like our spiritual fire has gone out or disappeared, the embers within us can be fanned back into a flame. Here’s the analogy…

Embers

Embers inside us

In our spiritual life we have ebbs and flows. Sometimes our walk is strong, and we feel really close to God…i.e. bigger flames. Other times we stray a bit or we might just get lax in spending time with God…i.e. the fire dies down or may even appear to be out. However, the embers are still inside of us. That initial fire happened when we invited Jesus into our hearts and lives and asked him to be our Lord and Savior. Even when we don’t see the flames, the embers are still there, and we can start a fire from them again. 

Fanning and adding tinder

We need to fan those embers back into a flame and add some tinder. This is done by spending more time with God, praying, worshipping, listening to teaching, reading the Bible, reading devotions, working with a mentor, and fellowshipping with other believers. We can also help to “fan” others (which in turn can help our own spiritual walk as well). These might be our children, grandchildren, spouses, family members, coworkers, or those we might be mentoring. We can do this by asking them questions and prompting them to search and build their own faith and dig deeper.

Don’t start with the big logs

Start small

As with building a fire we can’t start by putting big logs down and trying to light them. They won’t catch fire. Even if a piece does ignite, it’s temporary and not sustainable. It won’t provide the embers necessary to keep a sustainable fire going. Likewise, we don’t start with big spiritual tasks. We shouldn’t initially start by trying to read large chunks of the bible at a time or do marathon reading sessions. We shouldn’t set out pray for hour long sessions. Additionally, it’s not beneficial to try to dive into an in-depth study of the book of Revelation!

We might be able to do these things, but it’s not sustainable. We will eventually fizzle out. Instead we should use “tinder” (small bits of dry grass and tiny twigs). It’s best to start with small bits like 5-10 minute quiet times, short prayer stints (conversational in nature, spreading them out, using prompts or cues), and/or beginner’s level bible studies (preferably with others). Then we can gradually add larger “sticks” such as extending our time and digging a little deeper. Finally, as the fire builds we can throw on some “logs” like a more in-depth bible study, more significant amounts of time, a fast, etc.

Fires die down and grow, die down and grow

Also, we need to keep in mind that it’s normal for fires to die down and grow, die down and grow. The determinant of the size and duration of the fire is how much we are feeding or fueling it. To keep it going we have to continuously be adding fuel to the fire (wood). Therefore to stay “on fire” spiritually we must be feeding our spirits continuously, otherwise the fire wanes.

Nevertheless, even when the fire fades, embers remain. So if this happens we can just start the process over again, gradually adding the tinder and fanning it back into flames. It’s also easier to build a fire from embers than from scratch because it catches quicker, so we can let that encourage us.

How about you…do you need to start fanning some embers inside of you to rebuild a spiritual fire in your life?

Take Some Practical Steps to Rebuild Your Spiritual Fire:

• First, take inventory of your current spiritual state. Would you say that you are “on fire” for God, or has your spiritual progress, growth, or walk seemed to have dissipated a little?
• Second, know you have embers inside of you that can be reignited!
• Next, fan the embers and add tinder.

Spend some time reading the bible and praying and doing other activities that will improve and enhance your spiritual well-being (see some suggestions above for more ideas). Remember to start small and gradually work your way up.

• Finally, don’t beat yourself up if your fire dies down again. Remember that our progress is often in ebbs and flows, ups and downs. Just repeat the process, and keep fueling your fire.

What helps you when you start to notice that your spiritual fire has died off? Share with us by leaving a comment below!

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If you know anyone that could benefit from this, please pay it forward!  Share this post via the sharing links below.  “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.” 2 Corinthians 1:3-4 (NIV)