Hosanna Restoration Church

The call from God is for fire, not a pilot light. The fire must always burn. The Priests were supposed to keep it burning in the temple, but it was a symbol of the desire that God wanted for the hearts of the people.

David wrote of his heart longing for the Lord like the deer longs for water. He is the real air that we breathe. Without Him, we breathe only stale air and are barely alive.

In the cold weather that we have been experiencing recently, we would not like it if all that work is the pilot light. We want flames. We want the electricity to stay on. We want the flames to light. God desires the same from our hearts because everything works better when the fire is burning!

We can learn from history that just a fire in the temple is not enough. When the people’s hearts grew cold, and they forgot about their need for their wonderful Lord they fell apart. God sent Jesus to make us whole. He sent Jesus to give us life. Give thanks to the Lord. He is good. Give thanks because His mercy endures forever. We all need mercy.

When God visits, receptive hearts change. Changed hearts attract others. Just look at what is taking place on campuses in our nation and no doubt around the world. It began with a few people wanting more of God. Some pilot lights turned to flames. God responded and they responded to God. When others came to see what was going on, the word spread, and joy abounded.

I want to encourage you to consider that God is always the same. He does not change. If you are sitting with only the pilot light going, turn it up. Fan the flames. Stir up your heart. Don’t look on from a distance and think that it is wonderful to see those folks experiencing such joy. Join in!

If by chance you are looking at what is going on and hope that something like that does not happen to you or to your church; cast that imagination down and start shouting and singing for the goodness of God.

I am always amazed when people can understand being emotional about anything but God. God is emotional about you, return His love. In Mark chapter 7 verse 37, the people were amazed and they said over and over that everything Jesus did was wonderful. He even made the deaf to hear and gave speech to those who could not speak. Yes, everything He does is wonderful.

An old song from when I was a child said, take time to be holy, speak often with the Lord. The truth is, He wants to hear you. I know the people were referring to a man who could not speak and that Jesus had healed him, but think about it; speak to the Lord and speak to others about how wonderful He is. There is no one more wonderful.  Do everything you can to experience God. Draw near to Him and you will feel His nearness. The truth is, you have experienced His presence at some point in your life; you just did not know it was Him. It is possible to stand in the midst of people who are experiencing Him and miss the whole thing. Fire up!