BURNING EMBERS

A member of the church, who previously had been attending services regularly, stopped going. After a few weeks his bishop decided to visit him.  It was a chilly evening and the bishop found the man at home alone sitting before a blazing fire. 

Guessing the reason for his bishop’s visit. The man welcomed him in and led him to a comfortable chair near the fireplace. The bishop sat before the fire and not one word was exchanged. In the deafening silence, they stared at the dancing flames surrounding the burning logs. After several minutes the bishop picked up the fire tongs. He carefully lifted a brightly burning piece of wood and placed it to one side of the hearth. Then he sat back in his chair and the two men watch the burning embers dance about the lone piece of wood. 

The host was mezmorized by his bishop's actions and sat in quiet contemplation. Within a matter of minutes, the embers struggled to flicker and it began a slow decent into darkness. Within minutes, the brilliant glow that once embodied the wood had completely extinguished and now lie cold and dead upon the fireplace hearth. Not a word was spoken.

The bishop glanced at his watch and realized it was time to leave. He slowly stood up, picked up the tongs and placed the wood back in the middle of the fire. Immediately, it began to glow from within as the brilliantly light from the surrounding coals gave life to the dark embers. 

As the bishop reached the door to leave, the man, with tears streaming from his eyes responded,"Thank you, Bishop, for the visit and especially for the fiery sermon. I will be back in church on Sunday."

We live in a world that often tries to say too much with too little and consequently, few listen. Some of the best sermons are when we allow the Lord to speak directly to the heart.