Unshackled Moments ~ April 19 ~ Fan The Flames

In the desperation of needing to be free, my relationship with God became a priority. The priority is a more accurate statement. I prayed regularly and often, I read, I listened to others, messages and music that kept my attention on God and contact with Him. The things of the Spirit and my relationship with God were constantly on my mind, and everything I did during the day went through my God and relationship filter. It’s the closest to pray without ceasing that I have ever personally experienced.

Then things got better. I felt better. God set me free from my addictions. I found a life worth living. The promises of God began to come true for me. And the desperation faded away. Life, routine and responsibilities began pulling on my mind for attention, and little by little, without even realizing it, things went from filtering everything through my attention on God filter to trying to fit God and my time with Him into my schedule. This is natural, and not just with our relationship with God. When we first fall in love with another person, every moment is spent with that person or thinking of them. We can’t do anything long without our minds going to them and our feelings about them. But with time and security can come comfort with doing and thinking about more and more that has little or nothing to do with that relationship. But we can choose to think more about that love, and when we do, we discover the flames of relationship rekindle and come alive.

This keeps our earthly relationships new and alive, and it’s the same with the relationship with our Creator. If things have begun to feel a little less and like the fire has died down some, we can fan the flames. Turn our eyes back to relationship. Stop trying to find a way to make God fit into our busy schedule but rather make our schedule fit into our relationship with God. The more our mind turns to Him and our relationship with Him, regardless of where we are or what we’re doing, the higher and hotter the flames of love within us will burn.