Yes FM Morning Munch
(I had been editing out my pre-devotional banter but the segue would be awkward without it)
January 7thFan Into Flame
Good Morning! It another frigid morning; a shivery ride here! So I noticed that as soon as I walked out the door yesterday you two let them close most of the schools. Can’t leave you guys alone for a minute. Jeff I am disappointed I thought you were going to keep Tommy in line. But I totally understand with that breeze yesterday the cold turned frigid. Good thing we are talking about Fanning a Flame this week!
The spiritual atmosphere in Ephesus was frigid too. The Apostle Paul recognized that his young protégé leading the Church in Ephesus was struggling with his ministry in that very difficult mission field. Just as with 92% of Americans who make a New Years Resolution, Timothy’s resolve to serve God in that heathen city was weakening. Timothy was finding that as with any ministry that is having an impact for the kingdom, his was being assailed by the pagans and profiteers of Ephesus and from within the church by those teaching foolish and contrary doctrine, rejecting the purity of the Gospel message. Paul himself is nearing the end of his earthly ministry, and he knows it. “For I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time has come for my departure.” 2 Timothy 4:6. He searches for a message, an instruction not just to fix the current issues that Timothy is facing but that will carry him far past Paul’s own journey home to be with his savior. Perhaps he thinks of his own conversion, of the hands of Ananias resting on his head, the rush of the Holy Spirit enveloping his whole being as his sight returned and the immense clarity of Spirit revealed truth that would become his enduring purpose in life. He writes with love, with passion,
I thank God, whom I serve, as my forefathers did, with a clear conscience, as night and day I constantly remember you in my prayers. Recalling your tears, I long to see you, so that I may be filled with joy. I have been reminded of your sincere faith, which first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice and, I am persuaded, now lives in you also. For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands. For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline. So do not be ashamed to testify about our Lord, or ashamed of me his prisoner.
He writes with purpose. Fan the flame, Don’t be ashamed. If you want to dim the fire of the Holy Spirit in your life be ashamed of the power, the love and the self-discipline that comes with God’s active presence in your life. Jesus said, “Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house.” Matthew 5:15. Yet when we are ashamed of the Holy Spirit, of the Gospel or even of our brothers and sisters in Christ we slam that bowl down over the very flame that should bring light, warmth and life to all those around us, even those that hate and persecute us. “For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline”. When you are awash in your first love you don’t care what anyone thinks. This is what Christ himself called the Ephesian Christians, and probably Timothy himself, back to in Revelation 2. It is also a recurring theme for Paul, “I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile.” Romans 1:16 and the writer of Hebrews reminds us that Jesus is not ashamed to call us His family, Hebrews 2:11.
So Today, Fan the Flame, Don’t be Ashamed.
Fan Into Flame Ministries 
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