On this one cold rainy day, the preacher went to visit a member who was no longer attending worship services. The house, heated by a fireplace, was nice and warm. When asked why he no longer attended, the backslider replied, “I can worship as well alone here in my own house as I can at church services.” After reflecting a moment, without saying a word the preacher took the fireplace tongs, reached into the fire, lifted a live coal, and set it down carefully at the side of the grate away from the other coals.
They silently watched its hot red color turn different shades of gray as it slowly cooled. Soon the heat was gone; the color became a dull dead gray. The solitary coal died. After a continued pause, the member remarked;– “Ok, I’ll be at services Sunday!”
If God is truly our God, as we proclaim, then every service of the congregation should be a vital part of our lives. If we aren’t actively involved with others of the congregation in the fellowship offered at the assemblies, our spiritual life will soon fade. Worse yet, alone; it will grow cold and die. Just as one coal cannot make and sustain a fire, neither can one Christian alone sustain God’s love, not for himself nor in regard to warming other’s hearts for God.
When we sense our1ove and fervor for God growing cold, “we must take action immediately! After allowing Jesus to come back into our hearts, we must start attending all the services more enthusiastically. We must sing with greater fervor, pray with more sincerity, listen to the preacher more attentively, and enjoy those members around us with greater appreciation.
Together, Christians are live warm coals helping each other to continue faithful to God. Alone, we are vulnerable, and will slowly but surely die.
—via North Salinas, CA bulletin – 412/1992
