And He came and took the book out of the right hand of Him who sat on the throne. When He had taken the book, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each one holding a harp and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints. Revelation 5:7-8

"The bowls of incense are the prayers of the saints. Incense, by its nature, must be burned to produce the aroma, the smoke. True prayer only comes from a heart that has been set on fire. We have no ability of our own to 'burn' for the Lord or to send the sweet aroma of incense to Him. It is only when the 'fire' (the Holy Spirit) has lit the incense of our hearts that we are able to pray."

If we ever see that we have grown cold, then here are some ways to stoke the fire of our love:

• 1-- We must seek God earnestly for fire. God ignites our hearts with fire, upon urgent request. "Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you" (Matthew 7:7). "Then you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart" (Jeremiah 29:12-13).

• 2-- Get into God's Word with a passion. We must begin to yearn for it as a newborn craves milk (1 Peter 2:2), and long for it even as David, who said, "My soul is crushed with longing after Your ordinances at all times" (Psalm 119:20). God's Word is a fire which burns away all sin from the heart and then melts the heart in tender love for the Savior. "Is not My Word like fire...?" (Jeremiah 23:29).

• 3-- Get around other Christians who burn with passion for God. A log that rolls off the fire soon loses heat and eventually dies out. But, place it back with the other logs and it soon ignites once again. Spiritual heat is generated by being with those who are hot, so get with them. "Furthermore, if two lie down together they keep warm, but how can one be warm alone?" (Ecclesiastes 4:11).

• 4-- Seriously reject all sinful cravings, and set about to put to death any besetting sin. Habitual sin weakens the character and douses the flame of passion. Holy living brings a passion to life because holiness cultivates the presence of God, Who dwells in fire. We must fight sin effectively so that we can honestly say there is no besetting sin in our life (not that we will ever be without sin in this life, but we can live without habitual sin, by the grace of God).

• 5-- Lose your life in service to others. Paul said he was being poured out as a drink offering in sacrifice and service to the Philippians (Philippians 2:17). He was following in the footsteps of the Savior Who came not to be served but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many (Matthew 20:28). Selfishness is the great fire extinguisher of the Christian life, and many lose the joy of passion for God through selfish living. Find a ministry in which to become involved and addict yourself to the ministry, just as the house of Stephanus did and were commended for it (1 Corinthians 16:15). True passion for God is kindled on the fire of service and ministry.

• So finding zeal for the Lord is through:

  1— Earnestly seeking God for fire

  2— Studying God’s Word

  3— Fellowshipping with Christians who are hot for God

  4— Daily dying to the flesh with all of its cravings

  5— Losing our lives in service and ministry to others

 God Bless & Good Night!