Our hearts were made to live on FIRE for God! We were meant to passionately pursue God with all of our heart, mind, soul and strength. You see the devil is a master at causing a Christian’s heart that is on fire for God to become lukewarm or even cold towards the things of God. How does he do this? He works through life’s circumstances and tries to bring hopelessness, discouragement, bitterness, resentment, religion, sin, pride and the like which causes many to run from God and not to God.

The Bible says in John 10:10, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I [Jesus] have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” NIV. The devil has one job in mind for you…to destroy you and your relationship with God. He has a plan for your life! That’s right. Satan has a plan for your life…to steal your heart, to kill your body and destroy your family and all that is good in your life. He is a thief as the Bible says and thieves are relentless in their pursuit to take everything that is precious to you. And the most precious thing that we possess is our hearts.

Proverbs 4:23 says, “Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.” NIV We have to daily guard our hearts from the onslaught of the enemy so that we stay burning bright for God in such a dark and sin saturated world. Is it possible to stay on fire for God in such a world? Yes. Is it always easy? No. But I have a few secrets for you to help you stay on FIRE for God on a continual basis…even through life’s darkest moments.

1. Obey the first commandment until it steadily takes over EVERY area of your life. Luke 10:27 says, “…Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind” KJV This is first and greatest key to living on fire for God. Everything else in life flows from this verse. As we obey this verse, it completely changes the way we live before God and others. So how do we actually OBEY this verse? Love Him. Love Him. Love Him. He is so wonderful! If you pursue God, you will find God. Jeremiah 29:13 says, “You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart.” And this promise is to EVERYONE who calls out to God with all of their hearts. You know what is going on in your heart…LOVE Him entirely with it. You know what is going on in your soul…all those emotions and your will…LOVE Him entirely with it. You know what is going on with your strength and where you spend you energies…LOVE Him entirely with it. You know what is going on in your mind…those thoughts….LOVE Him entirely with your mind. If you do these things, God will visit you in more ways than you can imagine!
2. Live knowing that you are loved and enjoyed by God! Jude 1:21 says, “Keep yourselves in the love of God…” Here’s where a lot of people miss it. Do you know you are truly loved and enjoyed by God? His love is like no other love on the earth. But we have to keep ourselves daily under the umbrella of His love. Jeremiah 31:3 says, “…“I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with unfailing kindness.”I love that! An everlasting love. That is a love with no beginning and no end. His love for you will always remain. But just knowing about His love will not change you deeply. You and I have to RECEIVE His love into our hearts and then walk in the wonderful knowledge of His love! Understanding the depth of His love for us will keep our hearts ablaze for Him. And not only does He love us, but He enjoys us tremendously! Zephaniah 3:17 says, “…he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing.”You bring great joy to the heart of God! He created you and He LOVES all that He creates! I think about my own kids how much I enjoy and love them. There are times when I am at work or driving and I think about them and my heart is overwhelmed with joy and love for them and I can’t wait to get home and hug and kiss them. How much more our Heavenly Father? Now, take great delight in the knowledge of His love and joy over you and it will keep your heart red hot for Him!
3. Meditate on the Word of God daily. You may say, “I have trouble reading the Word of God.” Only those who do not understand how life changing the Word is will struggle reading it. You have to search it out. You have to meditate on it. If you want your heart to stay on fire for God, His Word must become alive in you. And this happens as you allow His powerful Words to saturate your heart and mind. Psalm 1:2,3 “…but whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and who meditates on his law day and night. That person is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither—whatever they do prospers.” If you want your heart and life to prosper and stay on fire, meditate on the Word continually!
4. Pray continually. In your heart, continually lift up prayers to God for yourself and those around you. Continual prayer is continual communion with God. 1 Thess. 5:17 says, “pray without ceasing,”And that’s the bottom line. If you want your heart to stay on fire, keep your heart focused on God’s heart throughout the day. As Brother Lawrence taught so well, “Practice the Presence of God.” Moment by moment lift your heart up to God and He will keep it ablaze within you. He loves it when you commune with Him throughout your busy day. And pray in the Spirit as well. Pray in tongues! I am telling you, if you choose to pray in the Spirit throughout the day, God will visit you and touch your heart and life and you will feel the holy fire of God burning within you!
5. Worship and praise Him continually! Ephesians 5:19 says, “speaking to one another with psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit. Sing and make music from your heart to the Lord,” A heart that chooses to worship and praise God through life’s ups AND downs will remain of fire for God! This is a GREAT secret to learn in God. That is worshipping, praising and thanking Him even through your dark times. Your heart will stay joyfully ablaze when you choose to do this—it’s your choice.
6. Become a witness for Jesus! This is VERY pleasing to God when you tell others about Him. This will keep your heart on fire for Him because it keeps your mind off yourself and on what is most important to God, souls! It is NOT His will that any would die and go to hell, though multitudes chose that path. Romans 10:13,14 “For whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved. How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher?” As a Christian, we HAVE to tell others about Jesus, otherwise, how will they hear? God will direct you to those you are to reach. But if you want to stay on fire for God, tell others about the fire that you feel on the inside!
7. Keep the sin out! Hebrews 12:14 says, “without holiness no one will see the Lord.”Nothing will make your heart grow lukewarm, dull and cold quicker than allowing sin in your life. I am not talking about perfection but I am talking about daily choosing to do those thing that please the Lord. You know what those things are. We MUST keep lust, anger, bitterness, unforgiveness, pride, selfishness and the like out of our lives. Matthew 5:8 says, “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.”If you want to see God, I mean really see Him and have ongoing fellowship and communion with the Creator of the Universe, then keep the sin out. Whatever sins that you know try to beset you, keep them FAR from you. Resist the devil. To resist the devil AND the flesh is to stay on FIRE for God. God has made a way through Jesus that we can say NO to sin and YES to God. We cannot do it without understanding the power of the cross. He took our sins to the cross so that we would not live in them any longer. Again, it boils down to a daily choice. It grieves His heart when we give in to sin. Sin separates us from God and I don’t know about you but I don’t want to distance myself from God. I want to be as close to God as a human can while living on this earth. Do you want to stay on fire for God? Keep your mind and heart clean from sin. Ask Him to forgive you now 1 John 1:9 says, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” Ask Him to cleanse you now by His blood!

Now, pursue these seven things and your heart will gradually become ablaze for God. Let go of the past because you don’t live there any longer. You are forgiven, loved and enjoyed by God. The choice is our own. Don’t EVER, EVER give up. He will change you in but a moment!