Will You Fan The Flame Before It Goes Out?
Good Morning Friends,
I do not know if you have ever gone camping, I imagine that a lot of millennials have not. But the rule in building a camp fire is to leave a space for the fire to breath. Starting a fire from scratch without a match is a real art. Access to air is essential so packing it so tight is not helpful. In the cold and darkness of the wild outdoors it is a big deal to have fire in your life. And there is a joy in getting it started. There is a focus in its dance and warmth. And there is a motivation to keep it alive and growing that reminds me of the importance of the Spirit in faith communities. Will You Fan The Flame Before It Goes Out?
Scripture: Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the command of God our Savior and of Christ Jesus our hope, To Timothy, my loyal child in the faith: Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord. I urge you, as I did when I was on my way to Macedonia, to remain in Ephesus so that you may instruct certain people not to teach any different doctrine, and not to occupy themselves with myths and endless genealogies that promote speculations rather than the divine training that is known by faith. But the aim of such instruction is love that comes from a pure heart, a good conscience, and sincere faith.
1 Timothy 1:1-5 (NRSV)
Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, for the sake of the promise of life that is in Christ Jesus, To Timothy, my beloved child: Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord. I am grateful to God—whom I worship with a clear conscience, as my ancestors did—when I remember you constantly in my prayers night and day. Recalling your tears, I long to see you so that I may be filled with joy. I am reminded of your sincere faith, a faith that lived first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice and now, I am sure, lives in you. For this reason I remind you to rekindle the gift of God that is within you through the laying on of my hands; for God did not give us a spirit of cowardice, but rather a spirit of power and of love and of self-discipline. Do not be ashamed, then, of the testimony about our Lord or of me his prisoner, but join with me in suffering for the gospel, relying on the power of God,
2 Timothy 1:1-8 (NRSV)
He also said, “The kingdom of God is as if someone would scatter seed on the ground, and would sleep and rise night and day, and the seed would sprout and grow, he does not know how. The earth produces of itself, first the stalk, then the head, then the full grain in the head. But when the grain is ripe, at once he goes in with his sickle, because the harvest has come.” He also said, “With what can we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable will we use for it? It is like a mustard seed, which, when sown upon the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on earth; yet when it is sown it grows up and becomes the greatest of all shrubs, and puts forth large branches, so that the birds of the air can make nests in its shade.” With many such parables he spoke the word to them, as they were able to hear it; he did not speak to them except in parables, but he explained everything in private to his disciples.
Mark 4:26-34 (NRSV)
Message: Today we reflect on how things grow and the focus is not just a flame or a plant but the convergence of images forged in the disciple relationship. You see in today’s lectionary text Paul’s concern for Timothy is as a father to a son and is the same kind of concern we are to have for other believers. Let us dig a little deeper here. Timothy was a teenager when he met Paul. His family lived in Lystra so he was a Galatian. His father was a Greek man. But we know nothing of his initial religious faith from his father. But, Timothy’s mom and grandmother were faithful Jewish women who taught the Old Testament scriptures to this boy they loved so much. As the women heard Paul preach, they believed in Jesus, and so did Timothy. Timothy may have seen Paul heal a lame man in his town. He may also have watched as an angry mob threw stones at Paul and left him for dead. Yet, he also knew Paul survived. When Paul came back to Lystra a couple of years later, during his second journey, Paul invited Timothy to travel with him. Timothy helped Paul establish churches in Philippi, Thessalonica, and Berea…Later he would be the lead minister in Ephesus where he would have seen the temple of Artemis (one of the seven wonders of the ancient world) and known that Greeks and barbarians in many lands venerated the worship of her in the Greek goddess, the virgin Diana. Shrines were scattered just about everywhere but the temple in Ephesus was described as having a brilliance that rivaled the Sun. In this environment Timothy had a growing but tiny ministry. When Paul writes this second letter to his “dear son” he is in prison in Rome he would have remembered these images as he prays for Timothy to rekindle the flame of the gift of God. The time is coming when the Romans would destroy the Jewish Temple and the life of being a Jew would change. Paul and Timothy were shining a light on a new way where we live a life of faith over fear and moreover live a life of abundant love in Christ. So, friends, do not let your fire die, keep it burning bright…do not forget your calling…remember why you were saved…fan the flame of the home fire…keep growing.
Pray we realize that out of a small spark a flame can be birthed. Pray we keep the fire of faith birthed in us burning bright. Pray we are willing to enter a world of those who have a tear and are broken and powerless. Pray here we establish a fellowship to speak gently to those who suffer when nothing can be done but to love. Pray we breathe life into the amazing promise of peace in the telling of stories of courage around the flame of our faith. Pray we be a light in the darkness. Pray we be a light to the nations as well. Pray we are victorious in our living and are filled with the spirit of God because we love. Pray we survive the fieriest of trials and the heresies of false teaching. Pray we realize that God gives the growth and is Lord of the Harvest. Pray God’s light shine a way in us that promotes growth. Pray we wake up and not just fan the flames before they go out but spread them in our creeds and communities that witness the love of Jesus. Pray the light shine in us over the wall welcoming in others and growing bright as a beacon of growth on our journey home. Pray we learn to grow in love.
Blessings,
John Lawson
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