Still Smoking

This powerful message takes us beyond the initial experience of being filled with God's fire and challenges us to maintain that flame daily. Drawing from Leviticus 6:12-13, we're reminded that in the Old Testament, priests had to tend the altar fire continually—adding wood, removing ashes, and ensuring it never went out. Today, we are both the temple and the altar, and God expects us to partner with Him in keeping our spiritual fire burning. The baptism of the Holy Spirit isn't meant to be a one-time mountaintop experience but rather the beginning of a lifestyle of burning passion for God. We learn that while God ignites the fire, we have a responsibility to feed it through daily surrender, time in the secret place, praying in the Spirit, and surrounding ourselves with other fire-carriers. The message confronts us with hard truths about what extinguishes our fire: unrepented sin, spiritual neglect, wrong company, and constant distraction. We're challenged to examine whether we're living in open sin or simply open neglect—drifting away through busyness without the presence. The call is clear: if we protect our secret place with God, He will protect our public fire. This isn't about religious duty but about cultivating an intimate relationship with the Holy Spirit who dwells within us.