A volcano of intense presence

I saw you, the readers of this word, gathered in a circle around a huge pit. It was like the crater at the summit of an active volcano; the heat and smoke was intense. A low wall with a railing on top went all the way around the edge and was all that separated the people from the red hot molten lava below. As they looked over the railing, everyone glowed a deep red in the light of the flames and explosions of fire. No one was afraid, yet all were in complete awe and were transfixed by this burning fire pit.

Eventually, a smartly dressed woman climbed over the railing and stood on the wall. ‘If nobody else is going to, I will’, she said, and she leapt into the crater of boiling lava. A pillar of fire, like a straight beam of light, shot out from the pit where she had entered. Soon others were climbing over and leaping in: a group of young men dived in; some older people sat on the edge, dangling their feet, before lowering themselves down and letting go.

There was very little conversation or sound between the people making their leaps. They were all focused on their personal jumps. Eventually, everyone had climbed over, made a leap and had been consumed. The beam of fire and light shooting upwards was now the diameter of the crater and reached to the heavens.

This is the season of the intense fire of God. His presence awaits you. This is the season of the intense presence of God in your life. The fire is here and is ready for you. Take time to consider your response – don’t jump because everyone else is jumping; don’t jump because you feel you have no choice (you do have a choice – and there is no condemnation in Christ Jesus); don’t jump in order to get something – it is a consuming fire… and yet you will receive all that you need when you enter the intense fire of God’s presence.

Luke 3:16
John answered them all, “I baptise you with water. But one who is more powerful than I will come, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptise you with the Holy Spirit and fire.