And now, little children, abide in him, so that when he appears we may have confidence and not shrink from him in shame at his coming.

1 John 2:28

When I was in college, the musician/songwriter/pastor, Keith Green, had a significant impact on me. I bought his albums, traveled to hear him, and received the newsletters from his ministry (still have many of them in a storage container).

One of his songs that has stood the test of time is O Lord, You’re Beautiful. Keith had a desire to honor God with every part of his life and I thought about that song today as I considered the verse above.

Part of the lyrics go like this –

Oh, Lord, please light the fire 
That once burnt bright and clear 
Replace the lamp of my first love 
That burns with holy fear 
Oh, Lord, You're beautiful 
Your face is all I seek 
For when Your eyes are on this child 
Your grace abounds to me 

It is difficult for me to imagine Keith in a place where he felt that his light had gone out or that he had left his first love, but I think that the closer we grow to Christ, the more our need of Him is revealed to us. We see that He is truly holy and righteous and worthy….and we are not, so we need to abide in Him.

Lord please light the the fire….