Steady Flame

John was talking to me yesterday, rather it was God speaking through him, and he brought up a verse from 2 Thessalonians 5:19, stating "do not put out the spirit's fire." He went on to say that a fire can be put out two ways; one by extinguishing it with water or something similar, and the other, by putting too much fuel on it too fast, not allowing a flame to develop. I went to church pondering this and what it meant for me.

I was wondering if I was trying to put too much fuel on the fire too soon, for I knew I wasn’t trying to put it out with water. There were these candles on the floor in the prayer room and I was watching them burn, fixated on the flame, asking God to reveal what it was I needed to learn from this. These flames were rather steady. Of course, there were times they were tousled about a bit, but they remained rooted to their wick, its source and presence. There was a candle next to me. I watched that one for a bit, until I decided to pull it closer for a better look. As I did, the wax contained in that tube, melted and liquefied, sloshed about, and then I saw it so clearly…

The flame is ignited by something outside of itself, the outpouring of the spirit when we accept Christ into our lives. It is contained on the wick, the foundation we have in the Word and all of God’s truths. It is a flame burning above all of this wax which is below it. The wax is hard at the beginning, but as the flame persists, the wax begins to soften and then liquefy. As we grow in our walk with God and keep the flame steady, then in time, those around us will be affected by us, and as time elapses, will become more and more so. Then either the pool of liquid wax at the top overflows or is shaken about, causing the wax to spill over, sending forth a rushing only to land someplace and harden. Once the wax is hardened, it leaves a lasting impression on wherever it landed. One looks around at all of these drops of hardened wax and sees that it came as a result of the flame.

None of this can happen without a steady flame. It takes time for the wax to soften and then liquefy. We can’t rush the Spirit and we can’t try to make the wax stir when it is not ready. If we try to move the candle too much, the flame will extinguish itself as a result of too much activity. We must be diligent in keeping our flame steady and only move it when the Spirit is calling. It is the steady flame that causes the eventual outpouring of the wax that leaves a lasting impression wherever it lands. It is our steady persistence in seeking after God that will cause the eventual outpouring of our gifts, affecting others and sending them out to leave a lasting impression.

And lastly, a flame can be transferred to another wick without diminishing its strength. From one flame can come another, and both can burn equally strong. Such is the picture of discipleship. Let us light many candles.