On March 26, 2025

SPECIAL PRÉCIS ON PASSING THE TEST: LEARNING TO CARRY GOD’S FIRE – (WITH VIDEO)

THEOLOGY

SCRIPTURE. “Consider it nothing but joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you fall into various trials. Be assured that the testing of your faith [through experience] produces endurance [leading to spiritual maturity, and inner peace]. And let endurance have its perfect result and do a thorough work, so that you may be perfect and completely developed [in your faith], lacking in nothing.” – JAMES 1:2-4, AMP

KEY TERM: “THAT YOU MAY BE PERFECT.” ‘Teleios’ [τέλειοι]: “‘Of full age, complete [mature], lacking nothing;’ the goal or purpose having been finished; adulthood, full grown [no longer children].” NOTE: “In the New Testament, ‘teleios’ is used to describe something that has reached its end or purpose, signifying completeness or maturity. It often refers to spiritual maturity or moral perfection, indicating a state of being fully developed in character and faith.”

QUOTATION. “God has not been trying an experiment on my faith or love in order to find out their quality. He knew it already. It was I who didn’t. In this Trial He makes us occupy the dock, the witness box, and the bench all at once. He always knew that my temple was a house of cards. His only way of making me realize the fact was to knock it down [and rebuild it from the ground up].” ― C.S. LEWIS, A Grief Observed, 1961; edited

COMMENTARY. “‘Count it all joy’ — That is, matter of the greatest joy; ‘when ye fall into divers temptations’ — Πειρασμοις, ‘trials;’ for though rendered ‘temptations,’ it does not signify here what is commonly meant by temptations, for these we are directed to pray against, but it denotes ‘Trials by affliction and persecution.’ To these God, by whose Providence they come, exposes men, not to lead them into sin, but to afford them an opportunity of exercising and improving their graces and virtues.

Hence our Lord declared those to be ‘blessed who were persecuted for righteousness’ sake’(Matthew 5:10); and exhorted such, (Matthew 5:42,) to ‘rejoice and be exceeding glad;’sentiments which doubtless the Apostle James had in his eye when he spoke to the Jewish Christians in this manner. ‘Knowing that the trying, or proving, of your faith’ — By persecution and affliction; ‘worketh patience’ — Exercises and thereby increases your patience, through the Divine blessing, and your resignation to God’s will, from which many other virtues will flow.

‘But let patience have her perfect work’ — Let it be duly and fully exercised, that it may rise to the highest degree of perfection: 1st, By composing your minds to a sweet and humble frame under your sufferings. 2d, By acknowledging God’s hand in them, and blessing him for them. 3d, By resisting all inclinations to impatience, fretfulness, and murmuring. 4th, By quietly waiting for deliverance, in the way God hath appointed, till he shall see fit to grant James 2:5, By enduring to the end of the time of your trial; ‘that ye may be perfect and entire’ — Adorned with every Christian grace and virtue; ‘wanting nothing’ — No kind or degree of grace which God requires to be in you; but may be complete in all the parts of holiness.” – JOSEPH BENSON, Notes on the Holy Bible, 5 vols., 1811-1818; edited

II. PRELUDE

So it was that I entered upon a 72-Hour Trial that in some ways seems small compared to many of yours, but for me, it was significant – and yes, painful. Seems I ate some very bad food at a favorite Mexican restaurant in Monument, Colorado on Saturday, March 15, 2025. The meal contained pork that was apparently not cooked long enough, and well, the rest is pretty much predictable.

At the beginning of the onset of the intense intestinal distress, I went to the Lord to inquire of all this and why He allowed it since ‘I had prayed first’ for permission to eat at this particular eatery. Even down to the meal I ordered! I sensed TWO THINGS from this inquiry that was to guide me through it.

PURPOSE. I am reasonably certain that I heard the Lord say, very specifically, that this was “To test me.” To which I dared to respond with a clearly petty questioning of Him since I had already endured many difficult trials. And, well, this seemed unfair of Him. No answer to the latter complaint (think of the C.S. Lewis’ quote about here).
DURATION. I recall about the same time I heard this clarification, that The Trial was to last for only “Three days.” During the raging illness of the second day, I also remember having the severest of doubts that it was only a three-day ordeal, and began to become convinced that I had acquired trichinosis, a pork-related infection that could last a lifetime.

CHRIST OUR TEMPLATE. “Then Jesus was led (guided) by the [Holy] Spirit into the wilderness (desert) to be tempted (tested and tried) by the devil.” – MATTHEW 4:1, AMP

What’s this, you say: The Father of Lights would, Himself, lead His own Perfect Son into a severe trial of His Faith? Wait a minute:

‘The Son of the Living God needed Testing?!’

Listen to a battle tested Missionary named KYLE FARRAN instruct us of why such a strategy is necessary for our maturing as well especially, beloved, as we are about to enter the most Difficult Days in History.

Mr. Farran serves as an ABWE (Association of Baptists for World Evangelism) Regional Director over Western Europe and lives in Portugal. He and his wife Heather previously served in South Africa and Tanzania along with their three daughters. He is the author of Overflowing: Ministry and Missions That Flow From the Heart [2022]. Kyle has a Master of Ministry in Organizational Leadership, and a B.S. in Biblical Studies.

III. TEACHING

TEN REASONS FOR TRIALS. I derive this Subtitle from the Title of the missionary’s article, “Ten Reasons God Entrusts Us with Trials,” paying close attention to the word, “Entrusts” that Noah Webster defines as: “To confide to the care of” (1828). That is to say: It is an ‘honor’ to be so tested by our King, beloved!

Editors’ Note: This post originally appeared on Kyle’s blog on December 8, 2017 and was published on the ABWE Blog February 8, 2019. So here we go for a down in the weeds Practical Primer from the Missionary Foxholes of serving Christ.

PART OF GOD’S WORK. “My Bible professor often said, “God never says, ‘Oops.’” God is in control of the trials. God is not on His Throne wringing His hands as He waits for the outcome of events. Even if I cannot see ‘how,’ I can be confident that God ‘is’ working for His glory. This helps me to stop worrying about how things are going to work out. My heart is peaceful when I remember that God promises to work for His glory and our eternal good.”
GOD’S POWER ON DISPLAY. “When God leads me into a trial, He is preparing to work for His glory. Historically, this is how God prefers to work. Gideon started off with an army one-fifth the size of the Midianites, and then God made the odds even worse: ‘The LORD said to Gideon, “The people with you are too many for me to give the Midianites into their hand, lest Israel boast over me, saying, “My own hand has saved me”’” (Judges 7:2). Just as God used Gideon’s testing, so too God uses our trials to show that He alone deserves the credit. Trials make it clear to the world that I am not in control. Everyone can see that I do not have the ability or strength to overcome the problem. Therefore, when God works, He gets all the glory, not me.”
PREPARATION FOR SERVICE. “When God works in a big way, it often involves one of his servants facing a big trial. We need to be ready for Big Storms and Trials. How can we be prepared? ‘Little Trials.’ I want God to trust me with His big tasks, but God does not give us the big tasks without testing us in the small things. ‘Every’ trial God sends, even our daily frustrations, are meant to test us and grow us stronger … Much like our physical body grows stronger through the trials of exercise, our soul grows stronger through the trials of life. Without trials our body and soul become weak. Seth Godin says, ‘Soldiers realize that it’s war that makes generals.’ [Paul writes]: ‘We rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us’ (Romans 5:3-5).”
REVELATION-SANCTIFICATION. “I do not always handle trials well. (I think one of the reasons God moved me to Africa was to teach me how impatient I really am.) When things do not go as planned, traffic is endless, ministries struggle, paperwork abounds, or health suffers, the opportunities for impatience are many. The trials do not ‘cause’ me to sin by being impatient, angry or complaining, they simply ‘reveal’ what is inside. If you cap a volcano the lava will blow out the side. If you try to cap your anger by not getting upset at your kids, it will probably blow out in another area like yelling at your dog or getting mad at other drivers. Trials reveal weaknesses. They reveal our inner sin. God reveals my sin to me in order that I can be sanctified. The greatest battle is the one that is inside of me. Because of this, God’s trials have been his greatest instrument of growth in my life. ‘Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing’ (James 1:2-4).”
DEPENDENCE ON GOD. “God uses trials to cause me to more fully depend on Him. He wants me to cling to Him and find peace in Him alone. ‘The greatest battle that is waged each day for the glory of God is not the one around me, it is the one in me.’ My sinful heart does not want to relinquish control. Trials are God’s tool to break my dependence on self so that I will trust in him alone. ‘Trials and weaknesses keep me from embezzling God’s glory.’ They make it clear that God alone deserves the recognition and honor. ‘God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, so that no human being might boast in the presence of God … as it is written, “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord’” (1 Corinthians 1:28-29, 31).”
SHOW THAT GOD IS DEPENDABLE. “As I go through trials, others are watching. They are watching to see if I respond in ‘Faith.’ Having peace in ‘comfort’ is normal. Having peace in ‘trials’ is not. Trials give me an opportunity to speak about the Hope that I have. If I complain or have a bad attitude when facing trials, I forfeit my opportunity to speak of the greatness God! God entrusts us with trials so that we can be a light. Let us not waste these opportunities. ‘But even if you should suffer for righteousness’ sake, you will be blessed. Have no fear of them, nor be troubled, but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you’ (1 Peter 3:14-15).”
SHOW THAT GOD IS INFINITELY VALUABLE. “As I go through trials or loss with peace and joy, others are watching. They are watching to see if I respond in joy. When I have joy in loss, it shows the world that Jesus is better. Unfortunately, joy in the midst of loss is not my default setting. My default is complaining, self-pity, and seeking sympathy. Before I respond in joy God has to teach me that Jesus is better than anything this world has to offer. He teaches through trials and loss that He alone is my Treasure and Great Reward … Even if we lose everything, God is still enough. Through tears we can say with Job, ‘The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord’ (Job 1:21). [Or with David], ‘Whom have I in heaven but you? And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever’ (Psalm 73:25-26). [Or The Prophet], ‘Though the fig tree should not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines, the produce of the olive fail and the fields yield no food, the flock be cut off from the fold and there be no herd in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord; I will take joy in the God of my salvation. God, the Lord, is my strength’ (Habakkuk 3:17-19).”
OPPORTUNITY FOR REWARD. “God entrusts me with trials as a Gift [and as an Honor]. If I respond to the trials in Faith and Holiness, I can have joy in the fact that I am storing up Rewards in Heaven. If I respond to the trials with fear or complaining, I miss the opportunity for reward.‘In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ’ (1 Peter 1:6-7).”
TRAINING FOR SPIRITUAL WARFARE. “A few years ago, when we opened the AIDS Care Home in South Africa, we came under attack. On Opening Day, Heather came down with mono, which lasted a year, and soon I began suffering from debilitating migraines. Later, Heather needed a serious tumor removed, and we had a demon possessed worker and patients (one even attacked Heather). Despite my experiences, it took another missionary and a Zulu pastor to point out that we may be facing spiritual warfare. For some reason, we Westerners are often slow to consider spiritual warfare (at least I was). When my life and ministry are carrying the Gospel into the Dark Places of this world, I am entering Satan’s strongholds. He will not go down without a fight … Satan wants to discourage us so that we give up. He will attack our health, our family’s health, and will send a myriad of trials to take us out of the fight. Don’t let him! Keep your eyes on God. If you are getting bombarded with trials, take heart [and pray], it may be because Satan is not happy with your life and ministry! ‘Wait for the LORD; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the LORD!’ (Psalm 27:14). ‘[H]e who is in you is greater than he who is in the world’ (1 John 4:4).”
TRIALS MAY BE FOR DISCIPLINE. “Even though this is listed last, I always start with examining my own heart. God often uses trials or sicknesses to get our attention and reveal sin. As a loving Father, He wants to restore us to fellowship with Him. ‘[D]o not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, nor be weary when reproved by Him. For the Lord disciplines the one He loves’ (Hebrews 12:5-6). ‘Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts! And see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting!’ (Psalm 139:23-24).”

IV. LAST THOUGHTS

Now then, all that makes perfect sense to any true follower of the Messiah. But if we are honest with our often, easily wearied selves in this Turbulent Hour: We Lament: How, oh God, can I possibly go on?

‘By Keeping the Fire!’

THE ROAD. Almost inarguably, my favorite American novelist is CORMAC MCCARTHY, who plays both the Poet and the Prophet in writing of Southern Gothic and Dystopian tales of great power. The Road I think may be his best, winning the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 2007.

It is like no other secular work, a brilliant Literary Template for what we shall have to face in the days ahead, and what we must be remade of in order to survive and even master it. His Primary Metaphor for courage, wisdom and endurance is, appropriately:

‘Carrying the Fire.”

PLOT SUMMARY. It follows an Unnamed Man and Boy who are father and son as they travel to safety after most of the Earth is wiped out by an Apocalyptic Event. Most of humanity has been destroyed, and the remaining humans mostly assault and eat other humans since there is no longer any civilization.

Here is their touching exchange as Father and Son see a figure approaching them from the opposite direction along The Road.

“You have to carry the fire.”
I don’t know how to.”
Yes, you do.”
Is the fire real? The fire?”
Yes it is.”
Where is it? I don’t know where it is.”
Yes you do. It’s inside you. It always was there. I can see it.”

With that as Superb Overture, I conclude my Commentary by borrowing from a brief essay from a pseudonymous Christian author who goes by the name of, “John.” From the title of his work published in Reconciled World (Feb. 22, 2022):

FOUR THOUGHTS ON [KEEPING] THE FIRE BURNING. “And the fire on the altar shall be kept burning on it; it shall not be put out. And the priest shall burn wood on it every morning, and lay the burnt offering in order on it; and he shall burn on it the fat of the peace offerings. A fire shall always be burning on the altar; it shall never go out.” – LEVITICUS 6:12-13, NKJV

OPEN. “For several days now I have reflected on the fire of my heart. How’s it burning? Where is the wood coming from? Are other people seeing the flames? I’ve thought about these verses and begun to pray them for my own life and yours as well. Here are FOUR THOUGHTS that I hope bring you encouragement as you lead and minister from a heart burning for the Lord.”

THE HOLY SPIRIT IS THE FIRE! “This Fire referred to in Leviticus was started by God Himself. ‘Fire came out from the presence of the Lord and consumed the burnt offering’ (Leviticus 9:24). We see here that God is the Source of The Flame the Priests were told to keep fueled. Even more, throughout the Bible we also see that the Holy Spirit Himself is often in the Flame [i.e., Is the Flame!]. God dwelt in the Pillar of Fire in Exodus 14:24 and the Holy Spirit dwelt in the Flames of Fire that fell at Pentecost in Acts 2:3-4. God is your Consuming Fire! (Hebrews 12:29). The reminder for us is that the Holy Spirit lives and dwells in us, and we are reminded by Paul in 2 Timothy 1:6 that we are to ‘Fan into flame the gift of God.’ Praise God my friends that the Flaming Fire of the Holy Spirit actually lives within us!”
WE ARE TO BE LIVING SACRIFICES. “To the Altar we bring our lives. Through the Gospel we have been offered Resurrection Life. Therefore, ‘We offer our bodies as living sacrifices, holy and acceptable to God’ (Romans 12:1-2). Our time, gifts, bodies, dreams, families, ministry—we bring it all to the Altar that burns with the Flames of the Holy Spirit, as living sacrifices. THIS, Paul says, is our ‘spiritual act of worship’ (Romans 12:2).”
THE FIRE NEEDS TO BE STOKED. “As followers of Christ, we ‘Fuel the Fire’ throughGod’s Word ‘applied’ in our life. Through prayer, worship, singing and joyful praise. Through Sabbath practice, study and community with others. Through ‘Loving [and speaking Truth’] to one another and spurring each other on towards love, [and] good deeds [‘based on right thinking!’]. Stoke the Fire daily my friends so that the Fire may burn continuously on the Altar.”
YOUR FLAME IS CONTAGIOUS. “God wants to make your life and faith in Him like a Bonfire that burns with intensity. A Flame that both warms all those in its presence as well as serves as a Light to this Dark World showing others where the Love [and Truth] of God is to be found (Matthew 5:16).”

CODA. My FIRST WITNESS was found in the face of my then, newly saved Mom, in 1978. I was in a rapidly accelerating, alcohol-fueled, suicidal depression, when my mother and I met in my brother-in-law’s home in Stockton, California. I had not seen her since she found Christ, and I remember my shock when I looked at her face that day.

“Ma! Your face! What has happened to you? It’s like, ALL LIT UP!”

And so it was that I would find that Same Fire on October 30, 1979, one day before taking my life on Halloween Night. And why, beloved? ‘Because Daris Rodriguez Kelly was Carrying the Fire, and she lit up The Way for me to follow.’

Selah. Selah.

YOUTUBE: https://youtu.be/cw05FtuFd_c