FIRE!
I’m not a cookout purist. In fact, I’d much rather hand off the grilling duties to someone else so that I can talk to people. Every 4th of July party that we have I count on Curtis Price manning the grill. I’m content to bring the man Pepsi after Pepsi as long as he’s wielding the tongs.
Regardless of who’s doing the grilling, nothing much happens without fire. One time we had a bunch of burgers and dogs on the grill when I heard the flame sputter and die. Talk about a situation. Half-cooked burgers just don’t cut it, do they?
We need the fire.
Fire is a powerful metaphor that appears all throughout Scripture, too, and we need God’s fire. From Moses’ encounter with the burning bush to the pillar of fire that led the nation of Israel our of Egypt to the fire on the altar in the Temple to the tongues of fire (flames) that rested on the people gathered in the upper room at Pentecost, God has used fire to signify his presence.
There is a group of us gathering this weekend to ask God to pour out his presence on our community. Arts Fest is a summer phenomenon that hits State College this time every year, a celebration of the arts and those who create. We’re asking the Creator, the Master Artist, to make his presence known, to draw people to him like a moth to a flame. You can check out ArtsFestAltar for more info. All throughout the Arts Fest, someone will be singing songs of praise to the Creator, and others will be praying.
But here’s where I definitely want to encourage you to jump in: Ignite! Friday night and Saturday night, 6-9 pm, we’ll be gathering for a time of extended worship and prayer. There will be some great live music, and I promise that the Lord will make his presence known. Well, actually, God promises: He says that he inhabits the praise of his people, and that where 2 or 3 are gathered in his name, he is there.
You don’t have to stay for the whole time; if you have other commitments, feel free to leave when you need to. But please come join us as we ask God to move in our community, in the hearts and lives of people who will be gathered for the Arts Fest. We’ll be meeting at the Unity Church of Jesus Christ on Gill Street, just a couple of blocks past Atherton.
We need the Fire of God to fall here in Happy Valley! And I believe that God is going to Ignite something meaningful as we worship and pray this weekend.
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