Fire has many qualities. It can provide warmth. It can purify a substance; it can create
new land with volcano flow. Fire from a kiln can finish a vase and make it beautiful.
Fire can also be disruptive. It can burn whatever is in its path. Fire is high energy. We
could not exist without our sun, which brings light and life to our planet.
We ask God to send us the Spirit, the fire of God’s love. God’s fire of love gives us the
potential to create, to build, to purify us with love. It is this love which enables us to
see our own value and can give us the spark to achieve our purpose in life. When the
Holy Spirit descended upon the Apostles at Pentecost, the Spirit appeared as tongues
of fire. We look to the saints who have possessed an inner fire to do miracles, found
religious communities, change the course of history, and give up their lives.
Today the church is calling lay and religious to go beyond words to express their faith.
Words alone can lack authenticity in the age of social media. It is the inner fire of
God’s love than can make what we say come alive in who we are and what we do.
- What does the symbol of “fire” mean to you?
- What helps you feel energized for your spiritual journey?
- Have you experienced the “fire of God’s love?”
O God, inflame my heart with the fire of your love.