Warning: Pyro on Her Way to Peru

I feel like I need to warn you.

I really like fire.

I like it so much, in fact, that I’ve decided to spend the rest of my life hanging out inside of the biggest one ever.

Yes, I know it gets ridiculously hot. I know it burns. I know you run the risk of morphing into a pile of ash… but alas, it’s what I’ve chosen. See, I lived in the cold and lukewarm for a while, and I didn’t like what happened to my heart. And in some ways, piles of ash is kind of the point. Because truthfully, I like what fire does…

Silver is only beautiful when it is refined inside of a burning flame.

Gold is only purified inside of fire’s heat and pressure.

Anything that is meant to dwindle inside of a fire will… and anything that is meant not to will only become stronger.

Set something on fire, the set it free. Watch what happens. It will set everything it touches on fire, too. It just has that contagious quality to it…

So, I’m throwing myself in, into a new temperature. Then going free. Hoping the same thing will happen. Head on. No holds barred.

…Because my ethos here is to either throw myself in all the way, or don’t do it at all. I want the Fire to intensify its purification process in me. I want so badly to be refined… although I’m aware of what I’m asking for when I pray that prayer…

…like when you pray for patience…and you find what little patience you do have being stretched like a muscle in order to get more…

Or like when you pray for deeper faith… you find yourself in a crisis in which your faith is tested, praying prayers like “I need Thee every hour” and learning to actually wholeheartedly trust the One you profess to follow…

Or when you pray to be refined and purified… and the heat gets turned up so high that it aches. But its the safest, most beautiful ache ever, and your impurities just begin to burn away. To ashes. All that’s left is what was worthy to stand in the first place— Jesus in you.

The temptation is to stand back and just watch the beauty of the fire do it’s thing in all its glory, but not engage in it. Not let it affect me. Roast things on it. Throw other things into it (yep, pyro…), but not ME.

However, I’m not retracting. In the words of CS Lewis: “…He’s not tame, but He’s good.” I’m all in. I’m burning. And the only way this journey is going to work is complete authenticity in every area of my life.  Sooooo, you’ll be getting to know me reeeeal well. 🙂

So the reason you are being warned is this: My journey over these next
11 months is not going to be easy. Which means, as I stick to my
commitment to growth, these blogs are not always going to be…
lets-skip-and-frolic-in-the-park-with-lollipops-in-hand kind of peppy. I pray that my heart will break for the things that break my Maker’s.

I hope these online journals give you the inside into what God is doing
all around the world for His kingdom, and that they also invite you into
what He is doing in me for His kingdom.

So keep your matches, candles, fireplaces, and bonfires away from me… unless you want to aid in the burning process… in which case, all your prayers, words of wisdom/discernment/encouragement/etc. will be embraced with my flaming open arms. And you could jump in, too. Then we could take on cool names like Shadrak, Mishak, and Abendago. Or… a normal one like Daniel.