We're packing up and headed out... Our family loves to go camping. Does yours? As our last "hurrah" of the summer, our family is ditching the heat for some cool mountain air and all of our devices for adventure. I'm so ready. Packing for this camping trip reminded me of a writing I did from a time Gage and I did a cross-country adventure. I wanted to share it with you today because... There are some simple things we can do to prevent or even reverse those chapters of our lives where we burn the candle at both ends for so long that we have become simply ashes. Check out this note I jotted down from our campsite in Monterey Bay, CA to find out three three questions that will take you from burnt out to back on fire. "It had been a week... Since a real shower, a meal not cooked over a fire in a cast iron pan, a night in a bed. Of road tripping, tent camping, spending our nights sitting fireside. As I sat in the black night watching the blue embers of our fire fade to white ash, a familiar verse came to mind. My husband and I left on this journey as ashes. We were burnt out from all the things that used to ignite a passion in our hearts. We were seeking fire again. As I’ve talked with people throughout our travels, I’ve realized that burn out is an epidemic sweeping throughout our nation. Our need to be needed, tendency to compare ourselves to one another, and desire to contribute something grand to society causes us to build bonfires out of our lives without gathering any wood to keep the fire going. I stared hard at the now thickening layer of ash knowing thats what I had created out of my life. Are you burnt out in areas that you used to have passion for? Do you find yourself going through the motions when you used to be excited to act? God desires for you to find your flame again. Here are three questions I have been asking myself to get my fire back that will hopefully help you too. 1. Who are you doing this for? This answer is your log, what your fire is built upon, so be genuine. If your answer is the same as when God birthed it in your heart, keep going. But if it has changed from that moment, reorient your focus. 2. Why do you have a passion to do this? This is your fire starter. What is the first thing that ever sparked your fire and is it still the thing that is driving you forward? If it’s not, write down a few memories from the start of your ministry or work. Look back at old pictures. Note how your passion has developed and is expanding but don’t lose sight of the match that lit your first flame. 3. How are you fueling your fire? In the same way you have to keep putting logs into a fire to keep it burning, you have to continually remember your answers to the first two questions. As time goes on, you’ll need to add in different things and bigger logs. Ask God what those look like and who should come along to help you build your fire now. “I will give them a crown of beauty instead of ashes…” God wants to replace the ashes of your desires with new dreams. Find and fuel your own flame so that you don’t burn out chasing someone else’s fire. And grow, so that you are a light for this dark world to see. " I pray that today you start to feel God blow on the embers of your heart and that you catch flame again in time. "You are a light for this dark world to see."
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AuthorKaley Rivera Thompson is an author, copywriter, Bible teacher, speaker, and worship leader. When she's not championing other women, cheering on the rising generation, writing or playing her guitar, Kaley loves to sip strong coffee, go on hikes, or take a day trip to the mountains with her family. She takes the most pride in being a mom to three little girls, Lina, Lili and Ceci. You can follow her on instagram at @kriverathompson or find out more on her website at kriverathompson.com. Archives
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