Thank you, Katy Perry!

“Do you ever feel like a plastic bag,
drifting through the wind
wanting to start again?
Do you ever feel, feel so paper thin
like a house of cards,
one blow from caving in?

Do you ever feel already buried deep?
6 feet under screams but no one seems to hear a thing
Do you know that there's still a chance for you
'Cause there's a spark in you

You just gotta ignite, the light, and let it shine
Just own the night like the 4th of July

'Cause baby you're a firework
Come on, show 'em what you're worth
Make 'em go "Oh, oh, oh"
As you shoot across the sky-y-y”~ "Firework" by Katy Perry

Thank you, Katy Perry.

Last night, as I sat on the front lawn at a friend’s house, the sky exploded above me. Bright, beautiful fireworks showered down from all sides. My family, friends, and I all lit fireworks, from sparklers to Roman candles, to ones that went way up in the sky. And they were beautiful!

As I took part in the 4^th of July festivities, I began to ponder the very mission of the person as God’s firework. Think about a firework: many times, it looks pretty unassuming; a cardboard shape, maybe with a pretty design on the outside. But the fuse is uncovered and/or pulled out, and lit—and then the beauty really happens. Fireworks are awe-inspiring. They light up the dark night sky, directing the attention of people throughout a neighborhood to the radiant beauty that is bursting forth.

People are just like this firework. We all look pretty unassuming; just ordinary people, living life through different vocations. We are all different shapes, sizes, and designs of fireworks: some people are married; others are single, religious, or widowed. But we are all still fireworks, called to a particular mission: to proclaim God’s kingdom. So we’re sitting there on the street or driveway, waiting. Then the Holy Spirit comes along. 

But, the Holy Spirit cannot utilize us for God’s work if we are not open. Our fuse must be uncovered, pulled out, and ready. We must not put barriers around ourselves; we must be completely open to whatever the Holy Spirit desires of us. Once we do this, the fire of the Holy Spirit will be able to ignite our fuse. When the fire of the Holy Spirit ignites us, we will began to send out sparks, and act in our own unique firework “performance.”

Not every firework performs in the same way; some fireworks go way up in the sky and burst into huge, breathtaking views of light. Other fireworks stay close to the ground and light up like flowers. Other fireworks are like strobe lights. There are fountains, sparklers, tanks, and killer bees. Despite how different all of these fireworks are, they all add beauty to the celebratory night; they attract people with the beautiful light against the night sky.

Each person is called to a different vocation, from their particular state of life. People are called to rise up to what God desires: that each person will be a joyful outburst of love for Him, witnessing to countless other people. Unfortunately, so many people think that God will just take them and do crazy things with them—as they put in no effort or openness. God wants each and every person to explode with joy for Him as His firework! However, this can only happen if the Holy Spirit can ignite the fuse. People must be open—completely open—to whatever the Holy Spirit wants, in order to be ignited with His fire. When people are totally open and willing, the Holy Spirit will enable them to explode into beautiful showers of sparks, drawing all people closer to God.

1 Thessalonians 5:19

“Do not quench the Spirit.”