Consuming Fire - part 3 - Wrath

I was renewed. I was inflamed.
I burned with passion.
But I strayed.
I took it too far.
Turned away from the Consuming Fire,
Toward a fellow human being.
Idolized another.
Then he was taken from me.
I was filled with anger. I was filled with rage.
My passion turned into fury over my betrayal.
How could he walk away?
When I had promised to serve him and love him?
How dare he?
Did he not understand I was a Child of the Fire?
Chosen? Beloved?
Did he not understand what he did to me, he did to the Consuming Fire?
And in the end of days he would have to account for every tear he caused me?
And then I understood:
When I looked at my life, I was looking at a reflection.
Mirroring the wrath of the Fire.
At last I understood His jealousy when we stray.
At last I knew Him when His wrath was turned towards us.
How dare we turn from Him?
When He does everything for us,
Even laying His own life down?
How could we?
How dare we idolize anyone else?
When He saved us and made us new?
How could we?
The fire within me burned bright, hot, yet heavy.
I grew wings of fury,
Declaring condemnation on all.
None deserve to live.
All have sinned.
Burn them.
End the misery.
And then I stopped.
I bowed my head and prayed for release.
I have not the power to rain down condemnation.
I am not the one to judge.
That is the task of the Consuming Fire, not mine.
He is both of wrath and justice.
But he is also of mercy and grace.
That is the sign of holiness.
Things that which seem to conflict, dwell side by side in Him.
He balances them, knowing which to give when.
I understood that I follow a Holy Fire.
Perfect. Sovereign.
We are dirty, destructive, deceitful.
But still He loves.
We deserve death.
His justice, His wrath calls for it when we stray.
But because He loves, He made a way for us.
His passion led to His glorious answer:
He died to fulfill justice, but allow mercy.
Died for us.
So we could burn away the dark.
So we could follow Him.
So we could pursue Him.
The Almighty Consuming Fire.

Consuming Fire - part 2 - Passion

Once a new creature, I sought a new path.
Life took a different form, a different meaning.
But life is a strange thing, so many twists and turns.
I was complete.
But still so many steps away from perfection.
I carried a fire inside me, a living fire.
Every day refining me, strengthening me.
There was still a great many things for me to learn.
I was eager to learn, to grow, to experience.
My bright eyes mirrored my youthful mind and heart.
I had tasted the greatest love on earth,
So it was time for me to share it.
And along the way I desired more answers.
So I was told to wait for someone.
Where I would be taught of more of Him, in a way I was not expecting.
I reached out to another being.
One as youthful as I.
As stranger as I to this newfound gift.
We fell madly in love and passion ran high;
Our discovery of the emotion and desire of one for another.
I glimpsed into his soul, his strengths, flaws, weaknesses.
All that he was.
And I understood.
My love for him, a dim reflection of the love of the Consuming Fire for us all.
I was overjoyed. A new comprehension of my true passion.
A greater adoration and worship of the Consuming Fire.
How could I not thank Him?
But a shadow lay on my fellow being's heart.
And the time came when I was forsaken.
For days I lay, screaming in anguish.
Why would what was given me be taken away?
Why did I learn to truly love, only to have it torn from me?
I begged Him to tell me why I lost my love.
And I received my answer:
To understand His passion.
When His people walk away from Him,
The agony, the betrayal He receives.
The tears of the Consuming Fire are a terrible sight.
For then it is as if all hope is lost.
I had received the fire, learned the smaller, human understanding of His passion:
He would go to the end's of the world for us.
And did.
Died so that we might have a chance.
How terrible for us to reject that love.
And still we do.
And still He loves.
Because of Him, could I follow Him.
And would I want to follow Him.
Because He is passionate for my soul, I pursue His fire.
The gloriously intricate Consuming Fire.

Consuming Fire - Part 1 - Mercy

When I met Him, I knew my life would never be the same.
I knew that I was unworthy of the gift being offered to me.
I knew I was a selfish monster of a human.
But still He held out His hand.
A hand made out of living fire.
Something inside me screamed in rage, in hate, in fear.
The same something that had been lying to me, telling me I was warm, I had no need for fire.
But I knew just how cold I was.
And the artificial warmth did not satisfy my need.
This fire was different. Alive.
I reached out with my spirit. Touched it.
I burned.
Something inside me screamed and died.
Tears flowed freely down my cheeks for days.
I was in such pain, but at the same time I was being freed.
There I was.
I was unworthy. But I was given clothing washed in supernatural blood - declaring me worthy.
I was dirty. But the fire burned it away until I was like a newborn child.
Loved. Saved.
Shown mercy. I was shown mercy.
I did not deserve what I received - a fresh start.
I did not deserve new life.
The fire had surrounded me, gone inside me, but did not truly harm me.
I was whole. Complete.
Before I was a shell with extra: garbage that clung to me and was me.
It was burned away.
It killed me and healed me all at once
I was a new creature.
The innocence I had lost was restored.
I deserved to die, but what I received instead was a miracle.
And though the road ahead would be long and difficult, I was ready.
Though I would stumble and wander away, looking back at who I once was and longing for it, I would return to the path.
Because of Him, could I follow Him.
Because He was merciful, I seek His fire.
The mysterious Consuming Fire.