[kindling]

Recently running has been getting a little stale. It just felt like the same thing over and over again. In an attempt to breathe a little life back into running I decided to listen to a podcast instead of music. I chose a sermon from the Village Church and headed out.

During the podcast, the preacher said something that almost made me stop in my tracks. To paraphrase, he stated that while we can place kindling around the hearts of our children, we can't actually light the kindling. Only the Holy Spirit can do that.

While the preacher may have been talking about raising children, what he said applies to everyone, including single folk like myself who haven't yet had any children.

I couldn't help but reflect on how many times in my own life I've skipped straight over laying kindling and instead desperately tried to light a fire for God in someone else's life.  But that's not my job. I am not able to actually change a single person's heart or soul for better or for worse.

But what I, along with every other Christian, can do is lead by example and keep the fire lit in our own hearts. We can lay the kindling around someone else's heart by exposing them to His love through our own actions, and showing them forgiveness He has shown us. How someone else reacts to our actions is totally out of our control.

There's something so wonderfully freeing about not being responsible for someone else's choices. When you try and light the fire yourself, you take on the responsibility for that fire. Often times I've ceased tending to my own fire because I've been so preoccupied with ensuring that someone else's stays lit. And how can I keep someone else's fire lit when I can't even keep my own burning? Plus, I can't really expect Him to light a fire that I keep interfering with.

So this week I'm challenging myself to lay kindling and then step away so that He may do the rest. What are you working on this week?