Fan the Flame

Ezra’s feet slapped a rhythm against the smooth dirt path. He could hardly wait to get to the clearing where his family held their annual harvest party. Everyone else had gone ahead, but Ezra had stayed back to help Grandpa carry the firewood.

Just the thought of s’mores made Ezra’s mouth water! Crunchy graham crackers, gooey marshmallows, and rich chocolate eaten by the light of a sizzling fire was the perfect way to spend a cool fall evening. Ezra spied the fire ring and hustled over to drop the logs on top of the glowing coals.

“Whoa, there, Ez,” shouted Grandpa. “We need to build the fire slowly if we want one that will last.” Ezra caught the load of wood before it fell into the ashes but his forehead wrinkled with confusion.

“Won’t the fire get bigger faster if we put these logs in, Grandpa?” Ezra stacked the wood a few feet away.

“Yes, if we drop those logs on all at once the fire might be roaring in no time. But it would be too hot for us to roast our marshmallows and it would burn up our wood before the night was over.” Grandpa wadded a newspaper into a ball and tossed it into the coals. “Or, it might not even light at all.”

“I think I get it. You are gonna let the newspaper burn first, right?” Ezra reached out to crumple another page into a ball and pretended to shoot a foul shot right into the pit.

Grandpa laughed at Ezra’s antics. “If we start small and fan the flame gently, we will get a nice strong fire. Then we can add the bigger logs that will burn slowly. That way we can enjoy s’mores all night long.”

Ezra watched as the edge of his newspaper ball smoldered. Grandpa leaned over the fire and gently blew out a steady stream of air. The paper sparked red and caught fire. Grandpa added another piece of newsprint then added a few small sticks and continued to blow gently, coaxing the fire into a glowing blaze in a matter of minutes.

Later, as Ezra sat licking the sticky goodness off his fingers, the fire warming his face, he thought about what Grandpa had told him. Grandpa explained that 2 Timothy told of a boy just a little older than Ezra who was friends with the Apostle Paul. Paul taught Timothy all he knew about Jesus and wanted Timothy to help him spread the good news to others. Timothy worried that he was not old enough to preach, but Paul encouraged Timothy to “fan into flame the gift of God” he had been given. Paul knew that Timothy needed to gently and slowly learn to use his talents and abilities for God or they would be like a poorly kindled fire. Ezra smiled to himself and vowed that he, too, wanted his life to burn like a warm, welcoming fire.