Ignite - How to Start a Fire
Fire can do a lot of wonderful things. Fire can be used as a primary source of heat. It can be used to light a room. Fire can even be used to melt and purify metal. When wood ignites everything changes.
The same is true spiritually. When someone is really ignited with the fire of God, it changes everything! Do you want to heat up your spiritual life?
Listen: Ignite - How to Start a Fire - Introduction
Listen: Ignite - How to Start a Fire
Sermon Notes
You and I were designed by God to experience Him and live at white-hot levels. Look at the life of Christ: from his birth to his death and resurrection it was full of supernatural power and adventure.
You can live your life on fire. A life where you can feel the presence of God’s spirit in your life, where there is a peace that passes all understanding, where you love in ways that are beyond your capacity to love. A life of fulfillment, freedom, and power.
I have come that you might have life and have it abundantly. — John 10:10
Isn’t that the kind of life you want for yourself?
I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! So, because you are lukewarm–neither hot nor cold–I am about to spit you out of my mouth. — Revelation 3:15-16
You will never enjoy your life in a lukewarm place. You can’t enjoy the pleasure of sin because you’ll feel guilty. But neither will you fully experience the power of God.
Beginning today we’re going to take you through a process that will move you to a white-hot level in your spiritual life. I sense that is what you are desiring as well. You are not here by accident. God brought you here.
7 Fire-Starters
- Pray every day with a positive and expectant attitude.
- Be in church every Sunday.
- Be a part of a Next Step Partnership.
- Make use of the Ignite Daily Devotional blog.
- Change someone’s world through acts of compassion.
- Take a walk across the room. Initiate friendships, get to know people, and listen to God for opportunities for spiritual conversations.
- Serve God and His church. Serving others doesn’t diminish your flame, but increases it.
Do you think it’s possible to do all 7 of these and still not be white-hot? Yes. The religious leaders of Jesus day did all the right stuff but inside they were unchanged. You must your open heart to God as you do these fire-starters.
Doing these things does not ward off hardship in your life. This is not a pain reduction plan. We do these things because they will help us grow spiritually and become more like Jesus Christ. Life may actually become more difficult and complicated.
At surfing school, they don’t teach you how to create waves. They teach you how to catch a wave and make the most of each wave. There is a wave of God’s spirit coming our way. You don’t want to miss it.
Where is your spiritual life? White hot? Flames? Sparks? Embers?
Next Steps
- Commit to the “7 Fire Starters” listed above.
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August 19th, 2007 at 1:25 pm
[…] a white-hot life of fulfillment, freedom, and power? If you missed the Sunday service, visit the sermon blog/podcast to listen to the teaching online, review and reflect on the sermon notes, and consider the next step […]
August 22nd, 2007 at 7:17 pm
As I reviewed the notes and thought about where I am in my spiritual life, I feel like I am somewhere between flames and white-hot. I would love to say I am white hot, but because of the way I’m wired up, it is hard for me to probably ever reach that level. I am always too focused on the wants and needs of my immediate circle, to put all that aside and say I have to focus on something greater than all this.
I am excited about this series and hope that I can over the next 6 weeks put my full devotion into it. I would love to see what God can do with me, when I commit fully to him.