Have you ever watched a fire begin to fade? Its flames flickering low, the warmth starting to wane, until someone stirs the coals and adds fresh fuel. In a moment, what looked like dying embers burst back into life.

When our children were younger, we used to love going camping in the School holidays. Some of our favourite memories were made sitting around the campfire at night, watching the flames flickering in the darkness. There was something mesmerising and comforting  about that glow, but if we didn’t tend to the fire, it would slowly fade. It needed attention. It needed fresh fuel. It needed stirring.

As I’ve been journeying through the Fan the Flame devotionals each day, I’ve been deeply reminded that God has entrusted something powerful to each of us. His Spirit, His gifts, and His unique calling. But just like a fire, it won’t burn brightly on its own. It needs attention. It needs to be stirred, fed, and fanned into flame so it can burn with purpose and passion.

Paul wrote to Timothy in 2 Tim 1:6-7 “For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands. For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline. 

That same Spirit is alive and at work in us today. And He does not lead us into fear, apathy, or passivity, but into bold, Spirit-filled living. In Acts 4, we see the early church under pressure. The disciples had every reason to shrink back, but instead, they came together in prayer and asked God for boldness. They didn’t pray for an easier path, they prayed for courage to stay faithful on the one they were already walking. On Tuesday morning, Jade and I were reflecting on the day’s reading in Acts 4:29 “And now, O Lord, hear their threats, and give us, your servants great boldness in preaching your word.” The disciples didn’t pray for protection, they prayed for boldness and God responded. They were filled afresh with the Holy Spirit and they spoke the word of God boldly.

I love that story, not just because of what God did then, but because it reminds me of what He can do now. These were ordinary people. No special qualifications. No perfect track records. Just hearts surrendered to God, filled with His Spirit and willing to step out of their comfort zone.

That’s the encouragement for each of us. We don’t need to be extraordinary, we just need to be available. The Holy Spirit takes what we offer and makes it powerful. He fills us to serve, speak and love in ways far beyond what we could ever imagine on our own. My prayer as we continue in this series is that each of us would lean in with open hearts, seeking God with expectancy and asking Him to fill us with boldness to follow wherever He leads. May God fan the flame in each of us, and may that fire ignite a movement of His love and truth throughout our neighbourhood and beyond!

God bless, Mel