How to Have F.E.R.V.O.R. Every Day!
This past week I was reading Romans 12, and I got fixated on verse 11:
“Do not let your zeal subside; keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord.”
If you do a deep dive on the word zeal, you’ll find it means diligence, speed, earnestness.
No surprise there.
But the word fervor?
It means “to boil.” It also means “to glow.”
Wow. That’s intense.
Am I glowing and boiling with spiritual zeal for the Lord?
And HOW do we actually do that?
I love a good acrostic, so I made one for the word FERVOR to help us remember what to do:
Fix your focus
Endure with joy
Refuse apathy
Value what lasts
Obey when it’s hard
Run with intention
Now let’s add Scripture to each one:
F — Fix your focus
This makes me think of verses like:
Proverbs 4:25
“Let your eyes look forward; fix your gaze straight ahead.”
Hebrews 12:2
“…fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross…”
Psalm 119:37
“Turn my eyes away from worthless things; revive me by Your word.”
E — Endure with joy
This makes me think of:
James 1:2
“Consider it pure joy, my brothers, when you encounter trials of many kinds…”
Romans 5:3–5
“…we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope…”
1 Peter 4:12–13
“Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial… but rejoice that you share in the suffering of Christ…”
R — Refuse apathy
This brings to mind:
Galatians 6:9
“Let us not grow weary in doing good, for in due time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.”
And the sobering warning in:
Revelation 3:15–16
“You are neither cold nor hot… because you are lukewarm… I am about to spit you out of my mouth.”
Yikes. I do not want God saying that to me on any level.
V — Value what lasts
This makes me think of:
Colossians 3:1–2
“Since you’ve been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above… set your minds on things above, not earthly things.”
Philippians 3:20–21
“But our citizenship is in heaven, and we eagerly await a Savior… who will transform our lowly bodies to be like His glorious body.”
(And am I ever looking forward to THAT! Let’s GO!)
O — Obey when it’s hard
These reminders come to mind:
Luke 9:23
“If anyone wants to come after Me, he must deny himself, take up his cross daily, and follow Me.”
John 14:15
“If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.”
Remember what we talked about last week: God’s values over our feelings.
R — Run with intention
This passage has been posted in my exercise room for at least 15 years:
1 Corinthians 9:24–27
“Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets surprised? Run in such a way as to get the prize!
Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever.
Therefore, I do not run like someone running aimlessly. I do not fight like a box or beating the air.
No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I’ve preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.”
So look back at this acrostic and ask yourself:
Where do I need to fix my focus?
Where am I complaining rather than enduring with joy?
Where have I accepted apathy and what am I going to do to annihilate it?
Where am I valuing what lasts and where am I not?
Where am I struggling to obey when it’s hard?
In what areas do I need to run with more intention?
Friends, God has so much more for us than we can imagine.
He desires closeness and intimacy with us, and He wants to produce growth and fruit in us and through us.
Keep running your race to win!!
I’m cheering for each and every one of you. I pray for you often. I love you. Keep going.
In passionate purpose,
Dorothy
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