I hate smoke.
Sure I like fire. I like it bright and hot but hold the wood smoke please. I like my gas fireplace. Pure, uncorrupted fire without the dirty smoke. Dangerous? How dangerous could flammable gas piped under our feet and into our homes be? What could go wrong? Anyhow it's way more convenient than wood cutting.
Of course in the summer, we turn down the gas, grab up the kids and head to the beach. Which usually leads to roasting hot dogs and s'mores. To do that you need a fire, and where there's a fire there's usually smoke. When they finally invent a gas beach fire I'll probably buy one.
"Hey kids who wants to help dad set up the fire?"
"Son don't wave that burning marshmallow NEAR THE PROPANE TAN..."
I don't want the smell of smoke on my clothes and wherever I sit the wind blows the smoke in my face. Not to mention, breathing the stuff will probably give you cancer.
Even though we're imperfect and full of smoke.
Jesus is full of gentleness and grace.
When He sees a tiny spark of fire in our lives
He doesn't put it out.
A bruised reed He will not break, and smoking flax He will not quench; He will bring forth justice for truth. - Isaiah 42:3
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2 comments:
Hmmm...this took a totally different turn at the end than I was expecting. I thought the moral of the story was going to be that we should not have even the stench of sin in our lives and that even just being near the fire was enough to get smoke on us. Now I'm not entirely sure what you're trying to say. Is your point that it is our responsibility to deal with our own sin in our lives - that the Holy Spirit will convict, but we need to deal with it?
My first draft had no point at all and I edited it to include the somewhat ambiguous ending you see now.
Well, I guess what I was trying to say is that sometimes I can be self-righteous and full of myself. I see others sinning and I feel a strong compulsion to write them off or distance myself from them.
Isn't it good that while we were still sinners Christ died for us? He sees the smoke of our sin but doesn't write us off. I'm more like Jonah I care more about my plant that gives me shade than a city full of sinners that God wants to save.
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