smoke

our God is a consuming fire.
cutting off the oxygen
to my sin
suffocating me strangling me sunny swirls
engulfing me
like a child trembling and trapped in a burning building
i cower
clutching adam's inheritance
desperately seeking to deny His power
and assert my own.
learning
(i've repeated kindergarten many times)
to let Him extinguish the blackened soot inside my heart.
to close my mouth on solid food.

our God is a consuming fire.
burning my cross.
cauterising my nature.

our God is a consuming fire.
charring the ground before me
parting the seas
cooking up perfection in the pot of the universe
letting it bubble up
and
over
the sides
scalding my skin
leaving only scars of discipline.

our God is a consuming fire.
from up on a mountain
to up on a cross
lighting the way home.



therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, for "our God is a consuming fire."
hebrews 12: 28-29

to the israelites the glory of God looked like a consuming fire on top of the mountain.
exodus 24: 17

but be assured today that the Lord your God is the one who goes across ahead of you like a devouring fire.
deuteronomy 9: 3