{"id":4454,"date":"2016-02-22T06:00:20","date_gmt":"2016-02-22T11:00:20","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.inspiredtolivefully.com\/?p=4454"},"modified":"2016-02-22T09:44:40","modified_gmt":"2016-02-22T14:44:40","slug":"feel-the-burn","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.inspiredtolivefully.com\/staging\/4119\/2016\/02\/22\/feel-the-burn\/","title":{"rendered":"Feel The Burn"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The thoughts you couldn\u2019t shake.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>The nudging from the Holy Spirit that you couldn\u2019t ignore.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Yes, that was what I was feeling when the Lord continually pursued me with thoughts of His Fire. You can read more about the prayer for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.inspiredtolivefully.com\/staging\/4119\/fire-fall\/\">Fire Fall HERE<\/a>. In response to His nudging I said yes and the fire began to rain down. Under the shower of fire, I lifted my face and welcomed the burn.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3>Do you welcome His fire fall?<\/h3>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3>Do you want to feel the burn?<\/h3>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Feeling the burn is a bit of a conundrum. When you feel the burn during exercise you KNOW that you are digging deep into those muscles, causing change. During exercise muscles burn available fuel for energy and contract. When the muscles burn that fuel, microscopic tears occur in the tissue. This tearing triggers muscle repair and this process of tearing and repair creates a stronger, more resilient body.&nbsp;Calves on fire don\u2019t really feel good but knowing you\u2019ve done your body good any looking good in a pair of short just seems to make the burn worthwhile.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>The same can be said for our spiritual lives. To experience the burn of the Holy Spirit in our lives, we have to put in work. We have to be intentional about seeking Him and soaking in His presence so we can reap the benefits of the after burn.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3>Are you close enough to Him to feel the burn?<\/h3>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Though I\u2019m from Boston and have dealt with the cold, I DO NOT like the cold. My poor children have even been shortchanged from outside time because of my dislike of the cold. And as much as I don\u2019t like the cold, I\u2019ve had seasons where I\u2019ve been spiritually cold. And that is just miserable. To be distant from God, to not feel the heat from His glowing embers, to be removed from His presence, is just torture. Oh friends, have you ever been there? Sometimes a tragic life experience can put you in that space or it can be the slow ebbing away when the issues of everyday life begin to consume your time, energy and thoughts. You may stop reading your word daily, stop attending bible study, miss a few Sunday services, pass up fellowshipping with Christian friends, or avoiding people who hold you accountable and before you know it, BAM! You\u2019ve baby stepped your way miles away from the flame and run smack into an iceberg.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>The beach is my absolute favorite place I love the feel of the heat from the sun radiating on my skin. As I sense the rays hitting my cheek, it\u2019s like a kiss from the Lord. As I feel the beams permeate my skin, its heat prickles and tingles. I find this sensation so comforting, like being enveloped in a blanket of love.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Lord, In Your presence I can\u2019t help but feel the heat of your love for me. I am engulfed and welcome the burn.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong><em>&#8220;As I looked, &#8220;thrones were set in place, and the Ancient of Days took his seat. His clothing was as white as snow; the hair of his head was white like wool. His throne was flaming with fire, and its wheels were all ablaze.\u201d Daniel 7:9<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Not only am I warmed, comforted and loved in Your presence; You are so gracious to speak to me.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong><em>\u201cThen you came near and stood at the foot of the mountain, and the mountain burned with fire to the midst of heaven, with darkness, cloud, and thick darkness.<\/em><em>&nbsp;<\/em><em>And the Lord spoke to you out of the midst of the fire.\u201d&nbsp;<\/em><\/strong><strong><em>Deuteronomy 4:11-12a<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>And not only do you abide with me and speak to me, but You also act on my behalf.&nbsp;Your holy fire consumes my enemies, tests the work I\u2019ve done, washes away my filth and covers me as a pillar by night.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>When Your embers burn, You act and as such, when I feel the burn, I will act. I am on fire for you as John was. I am a voice crying out in the wilderness declaring, \u201cPrepare ye the way of the Lord.\u201d Like John, I am a burning shining lamp (John 5:35).&nbsp;As a minister, I am a flame of fire (Psalm 104:4). Friends, let us not go cold but burn radiantly as a bright light in this dark cruel world.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>[bctt tweet=&#8221;God&#8217;s passionate desire burns brightly for you. Will you dare to feel the burn?&#8221;]<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>I pray you join me again next Monday as I wrap up this unintended series on FIRE. When I sat to write Fire Fall last week, I did not know the Word would churn and bubble in my Spirit as it has. &nbsp;It&#8217;s like fire shut up in my bones and it won&#8217;t leave me alone.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Next week we&#8217;ll examine how to keep the fire burning. &nbsp;And if you missed PART 1 Fire Fall, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.inspiredtolivefully.com\/staging\/4119\/fire-fall\/\">CLICK HERE<\/a> to read that now.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>As always, it is my prayer that you\u2019ve been <em>Inspired To Live Fully<\/em>!<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/w5nyv\/7964539124\/in\/photolist-d8Nm15-d8NjLy-9dDSx-3TNCn-gbdfk-9dDfC-5tWtSQ-32HJfT-9dCEs-8ogHND-akh4DJ-4tkojK-bvcbXn-9dDhr-KFPLw-eP3RjK-wTMvhk-rCtu9h-eP3ReV-67pEk9-9yoDVJ-47zCog-6ntMuu-iWbavg-Hzirp-fQmrpJ-bpJ9D4-5RFtbY-fkoBp5-eRZv3R-fQna63-eSbX2S-5rxC8p-5qAWAE-eRZvqn-6afsbq-9aMvUZ-kZUBPH-32HK8K-eSbXAd-fkoANA-eSbX55-fkoC75-eSbXZW-eSbX6U-oZGgAN-32HJjH-mVi5ow-32NgYQ-5eioQx\">Photo Credit<\/a><br \/>\nHappy to connect with these friends sharing the Good News <a href=\"http:\/\/www.lifeoffaithblog.com\">Mommy Moments<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.purposefulfaith.com\">Purposeful Faith<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The thoughts you couldn\u2019t shake. &nbsp; The nudging from the Holy Spirit that you couldn\u2019t ignore. &nbsp; Yes, that was what I was feeling when the Lord continually pursued me with thoughts of His Fire. You can read more about the prayer for Fire Fall HERE. In response to His nudging I said yes and [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4455,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[677,692,674,226,86,693],"class_list":["post-4454","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-spiritual-life","tag-burn","tag-commune","tag-fire","tag-intimacy","tag-presence","tag-seek-him"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.inspiredtolivefully.com\/staging\/4119\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4454","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.inspiredtolivefully.com\/staging\/4119\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.inspiredtolivefully.com\/staging\/4119\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.inspiredtolivefully.com\/staging\/4119\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.inspiredtolivefully.com\/staging\/4119\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4454"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.inspiredtolivefully.com\/staging\/4119\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4454\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4458,"href":"https:\/\/www.inspiredtolivefully.com\/staging\/4119\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4454\/revisions\/4458"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.inspiredtolivefully.com\/staging\/4119\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4455"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.inspiredtolivefully.com\/staging\/4119\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4454"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.inspiredtolivefully.com\/staging\/4119\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4454"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.inspiredtolivefully.com\/staging\/4119\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4454"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}