Banana Latte's and Burning Hearts

I’m at a coffee shop I love drinking a banana latte. They’re my favorite. The air is warm and humid outside. The flowers are vibrant. A pastor of the church I've been attending here at school happens to be sitting with a younger man, listening and engaging in conversation with him over his future. Something about it struck me. Seeing an individual who has taught the Word of God in a way that has led me to tears is beside me sitting, listening and explaining the things of God. He has stood in front of many people, being vulnerable and true to the Scriptures. Yet here he was, and my heart is burning from the words that were being spoken. Something about hearing the Scriptures in a mundane setting fixated my heart upon God. There was no elegance. No three main points of application. Just the Holy Spirit revealing Jesus in the Word. This was transforming the young man’s heart, as well as my own.

The first thought that came to mind of this encounter was “this is what true discipleship is!” Yet, the more I began to ponder, I realized discipleship has less to do with a coffee date and more to do with pointing someone to Jesus in the Scriptures. Being discipled is the willingness to do life with someone that will call you higher to the things of God. For me, these instances often are a scheduled coffee date. And I don’t know about you, but coffee gets me talking. Back home I have regular coffee meetups with those who have special access to speak into my life. They KNOW that after 30 minutes of an iced latte I receive a deep passion for anything I’m talking about. (My Mom especially has heard me ramble about the importance of women lifting, dating, and gut microbiomes for probably thousands of hours at this point. She’s a real one.)

As the wind carried some of their conversation, my mind was taken aback to a passage I’ve read recently. From Luke 24:32, “They said to each other, “Did not our hearts burn within us while he talked to us on the road, while he opened to us the Scriptures?” I did not hear most of their conversation, but I knew they were engaging with the Word of God and the Pastor was teaching him. While these men were engaging in talk of higher things, my heart turned towards the Lord. What does it mean for my heart to burn? Is that passion? Is it excitement? Is it conviction?

The Greek word for burn here is καίω. Other English words to describe καίω are ‘to light’ or ‘to kindle’. In essence, the word burn has more to do with a flame inside the heart rather than a mere emotion. The Scriptures exist to point us to Jesus. They teach us about Him, show us how to operate as His own, and stir in us a heavenly longing for eternity. When Jesus opened up the Scriptures to the two men walking the road to Emmaus, something changed within them that they did not notice in the moment. They were unknowingly being taught by the Lamb of God Himself and the desire for Him was evoked.

I don’t know what your life looks like right now. I feel that some of you are probably in the midst of seemingly boring daily activity. You wake up, go to work or school, go to sleep, and do it all over again. Life feels dull and ‘burning’ for God feels far off.

Maybe you’re busy and in the high of life. You’re walking in answered prayers. The dreams you’ve had of the relationship, the school, the child, or the job have come to pass. Your schedule is full of exciting events. Yet, burning for God has faded.

The truth is that these men encountered the person of Jesus and the Scriptures while WALKING. They were having a conversation about the things of God and Jesus came and revealed Himself in the Scriptures. It’s important to note that it was only after the fact that it was Jesus speaking to them and that their hearts were burning when He spoke.

We’ve heard the terminology of someone being “on fire” for God. Yet I would say there is a difference between being on fire for Him and burning for Him. If you’re on fire, others can tell. Your actions reveal your commitment. If you are burning for Him, the depths of your soul are tied to Him. Sometimes you cannot even tell in the moment, as with these men in the passage. Your heart changes and you feel a softening within towards the things of God.

As this Pastor spoke, my heart began to burn for the things of God. Not because of who he was, but because of the way he spoke about the Scriptures. If you are a believer, the same Spirit that raised Christ Jesus from the dead lives in you (Romans 8:11). This means that the Spirit Himself will reveal Christ in the Word of God to you in the same way Jesus did to the men on their walk. 

Looking for discipleship? Meet with others who recount to you the Scriptures.

Desire for your heart to burn? Search for Jesus in the Scriptures.

You are loved and prayed for, my friend. May your heart burn for Him today.

In Him,

Kate