Skip to main content

Sit Close To The Fire

41 “Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, 42 but few things are needed—or indeed only one.[a] Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.”




When I was little, we had one stove in our house.  Not a furnace in the basement in some out of the way corner.  No, we had one stove in the middle of the  house that was supposed to heat the whole house.  The stove worked great from late spring  to late fall that means that from November to April the whole house was like a tundra except for one place.  If you guess that the warm spot was right on the stove, you are "spot on".  I remember many arguments with my siblings about who was going sit on near the stove.  We knew that if we got close enough to the stove, we would be warm.  Friends, in our spiritual life, the only way we can stay on fire spiritually is to stay near the fire. In the same way, that my only hope of staying warm when I was young was to hug the stove and soak up every bit of its warmth.  As a Christian, I often fail right here.  I forget that I need to spend time at the feet of Jesus If there is any hope of my staying more than lukewarm or even cold.  As we go through our day, let's intentionally carve out time for God.   Enough time during the day to totally soak up the heat from being with God.  The best thing is that there is room at Jesus's feet for all of us.  We don’t have to “jockey for position” and no one who wants to gather at his feet will be denied.  We never have to leave the presence of Jesus. The only one we’ll ever have to argue with about sitting close to the fire is the deceiver, Satan.  He will do everything to keep you from spending time with God.  Mary and Martha had Jesus at their house, yet only one of them was getting close enough to soak up the warmth of Jesus.  Satan had kept Martha from being close to the fire.  I know that in our crazy, hectic world it is hard, if not impossible, to find time for even one more thing.  For this reason, it is imperative that we hug the fire.  

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Thank you God for Leading us

Thank you God for how you lead us. Like a shepherd leading his sheep. Sometimes through the words you spoke in the Bible, your written word. at other times, it was the wise words from friends,  coworkers,or neighbors spoken at just the right time. Still other times it was a gentle tug,   a whisper to our heart to move  in one direction or another;  intuition or a sixth sense that one   way or another was right or wrong    Yet, when I listened and obeyed   I found the way was clear, distinct and easy to follow. You never leave us to guess which way to go.                                                                                                      ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Grow Old Gracefully

I’d like to tell you about a lady I visited yesterday.   She is ninety-five years young.  She recently moved into nursing home.  She asked one of the workers how many times she would have to walk around the outside of the building in order to walk a mile.  She said the person told her about ten.   Then she leaned in really close and whispered, “I walked around twelve just to be sure I walked a mile.”  Hahahaha! What a lady!  She loves to keep active, even in a nursing home.  As we talked, I saw no anger or bitterness in her speech or actions. There was only a love for God, a heart of compassion, and a sense of humor. She has befriended the one "prickly pear" at the home because as she said, “I have to love her, so she knows Jesus loves her too.”  Wow!!! I need to live like that!  I want to show that much compassion for those around me that need Jesus.  She loved to talk about God and what he was teaching her. ...
Post a Comment
Read more

What’s That Smell?

To the one we are an aroma that brings death; to the other, an aroma that brings life. 2Corinthians 2:16 Last break!  The shift was almost over. Then the unthinkable happened, this man appeared out of nowhere wanting to know where the flashlights were kept.  As we were on our way to the flashlights, I noticed that this man had a very strong odor.  I thought perhaps I could get in front of him so that the smell would not be as strong.   That, however, was not to be either since; he insisted on keeping pace and walking right beside me. By the time we got to where the flashlights were; I was practically running just to keep ahead of him.  I showed him the flashlights and made a hasty exit.  If you’re like me, you shower and even put on perfume or cologne so that you will not stink.  We are concerned that the smell coming from our body is not offensive to others.  As I write this, I wonder if we are as concerned with our spiritual aroma as ...
Post a Comment
Read more