A fire that is not tended is a fire that will burn out. It seems obvious, but it is a truth that we rarely apply to our lives. To sustain passion, we must continually feed it – we cannot stay in what is comfortable, what is known, in what has already been consumed by the fire of God. We must seek out new encounters, new attitudes, new experiences to fuel the fire that God has ignited within us. We cannot remain in what has already been burned away, we must move into the new passion that now compels us forward.

Consider the story of the resurrection encounter in Galilee (John 21). You had followed Jesus closely from the beginning – from the time he called to you from your boat, right up until the end, when they took him from you, leaving you with nothing to show for your loyalty but grief and despair. You remember the words he spoke to you as you turn, once again, to cast your net over the edge of the boat – “come and follow me.”

You remember his teachings, the way he had spoken with the crowds, stretching out his hands to gather them in his healing embrace. You remember the transformation of lives that you had witnessed, right before your eyes, and you remember how you had been changed yourself. You had hoped that this was it, this was what you had been waiting for, that after him, life would never be the same.

But you also remember that the hope you’d had was extinguished the day they took him. He was gone now, buried in the earth, and you were left standing in the ashes of the fire that had once burned so brightly within you. You had no choice but to return to the life you had once lived, casting your net each day, just trying to bring in enough fish to sustain yourself and your family.

And that’s where you were today, standing in a boat with the others who had followed him, trying, with little success, to bring in some sort of catch. You had been at it all night with no luck. You’re about to give in and call it quits when you notice a man standing on the shore. He yells to you, “Throw your net on the other side of the boat and you’ll get some.” Though you have little reason to trust him, something within you prompts you to act on his advice. You move the net to the other side, only to come up with an overflowing net! There are too many fish to even bring aboard!

You are now faced with a choice: you can stay in the boat and continue fishing – after all, with a catch this large there must be more fish for the taking. But something about this stranger on the shore compels you towards him. As you eagerly make your way towards the shore one of your companions cries out, “it’s him!” You can see him now, Jesus, the man you thought to be dead, the hope that you thought to be extinguished, waiting for you.

You hadn’t expected to see him here, hadn’t expected to see him ever again. It seems so strange that he would be here, among the fishing boats, the remnants of your old life. But here he is, standing next to a burning fire, arms open in invitation. As you step out of the boat, those familiar words greet you once again, “follow me!”

Questions for reflection:

• What passion has God ignited in you over the past six weeks?
• In what ways do you identify with the wildfire metaphor? Are you safe from the fire because there is no fuel left to burn?
• What do you need to clear out, to get rid of, to make room for new fuel?
• How can you begin to arrange your life, stepping out of what is comfortable, to sustain the fire that burns within you?