Fuel comes in many forms

Desmund Tutu said, "Hope is being able to see that there is light despite all the darkness." We can see all manner of darkness, but we don't see clearly in that darkness, do we? We are enveloped by its heavy shadow, but we can push back that shadow when we bring light into that dark place. Someone once said we can either be a candle or the mirror that reflects the candle - either way, we are pushing back darkness. We may not feel like it, but our very presence on this earth brings light into some very dark places.

Lord, you provide the flame for my lamp. You, God, turn the darkness around me into light. (Psalm 18:28)

God provides our 'flame' - we reflect his light. There is much to be said about having the 'right fuel' for our fire. You could start a fire with a gallon of gasoline, but it isn't all that safe because it has an explosive power. You could start a fire with a mirror, but it isn't reliable unless you have the brighter light of the sun to reflect in that mirror. You could start a fire without any light, but the friction required to start that fire takes a toll on an individual. We need God's 'fuel' for our inner fire, but we also need it for the fire that is aimed at impacting a very dark world around us.

Fuel comes in many forms. I have discovered you can get camp stoves that burn with propane, butane, or kerosene. You can gather matches, wood, and kindling to create a fire. You might even be able to use fuels such as paper, wood shavings formed into 'logs' of sorts, or even dried animal dung. While the latter doesn't seem like a good option for 'fuel', it works, nonetheless. We might not see the fuel used as some can be odorless and colorless. We might not observe the qualities of the fuel at first, but some burn longer and brighter than others. Whatever the fuel, it has a purpose. Whatever the fuel God puts in your tank, it has a purpose!

The whole purpose of light is to turn darkness into light. The whole purpose of fuel is to keep the fire ignited. Without the fuel, there is no ignition. Without the ignition, there is no fire. Without the fire, the darkness remains. Since God gives us the fuel and his Spirit ignites it within us, isn't it about time we use that light within to push back some of the darkness around us? Just askin!