When Seekers Get on Your Nerves
Scripture
2 Timothy 1:7 (ESV) “For God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.”
Devotion
Pastor Darren made a blunt, honest observation: some people love seekers—those on fire for God, hungry, expressive in worship. Others see those same seekers and think, “They make me sick.” Often, the problem isn’t the seeker; it’s that their fire exposes our cold coals.
He said, “We don’t like watching somebody else burn while we’re sitting there with wet wood in our life that won’t catch on fire.” Instead of letting their passion convict us and stir us, we might criticize, mock, or distance ourselves.
But God has not given us a spirit of fear, comparison, or resentment. He’s given us a spirit of power, love, and self-control. Love celebrates what God is doing in others and asks, “Lord, do it in me, too.” Self-control refuses jealousy and offense. Power leans into the Holy Spirit instead of resisting Him.
Seekers may make you uncomfortable—but that discomfort might be a holy invitation. Instead of criticizing them, ask God: “What needs to change in me?”
Reflection
Prayer
Lord,
Expose any jealousy, criticism, or resistance in me when I see others passionate for You. I don’t want to resent their fire; I want to catch it. Give me a spirit of power, love, and self-control. Help me celebrate what You’re doing in others and let it stir a deeper hunger in my own heart. Rekindle my fire, Lord.
In Jesus’ name, Amen.
2 Timothy 1:7 (ESV) “For God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.”
Devotion
Pastor Darren made a blunt, honest observation: some people love seekers—those on fire for God, hungry, expressive in worship. Others see those same seekers and think, “They make me sick.” Often, the problem isn’t the seeker; it’s that their fire exposes our cold coals.
He said, “We don’t like watching somebody else burn while we’re sitting there with wet wood in our life that won’t catch on fire.” Instead of letting their passion convict us and stir us, we might criticize, mock, or distance ourselves.
But God has not given us a spirit of fear, comparison, or resentment. He’s given us a spirit of power, love, and self-control. Love celebrates what God is doing in others and asks, “Lord, do it in me, too.” Self-control refuses jealousy and offense. Power leans into the Holy Spirit instead of resisting Him.
Seekers may make you uncomfortable—but that discomfort might be a holy invitation. Instead of criticizing them, ask God: “What needs to change in me?”
Reflection
- How do you honestly feel when you see someone on fire for God—excited worship, bold prayer, radical obedience?
- Have you ever been critical of someone’s passion because it highlighted your own dryness?
- What might it look like to let someone else’s fire ignite a new hunger in you instead of offend you?
Prayer
Lord,
Expose any jealousy, criticism, or resistance in me when I see others passionate for You. I don’t want to resent their fire; I want to catch it. Give me a spirit of power, love, and self-control. Help me celebrate what You’re doing in others and let it stir a deeper hunger in my own heart. Rekindle my fire, Lord.
In Jesus’ name, Amen.