Wildfires in Colorado and Fires in Life

While political storms are brewing in Washington, DC, a massive wildfire is raging in Colorado Springs, CO. Fire Chief Richard Brown called it a “firestorm of epic proportions.”

Record-setting temperatures and dry, windy conditions caused the fire to double in size overnight and hampered efforts to contain it. Thirty-two thousand residents in Colorado' second largest city were forced to evacuate, and the blaze is threatening the U.S. Air Force Academy campus. Meanwhile, a lightning-sparked fire was raging in Boulder. Six others are burning in the state. Governor John Hickenlooper said it is “the worst fire season in the history of Colorado.”

Intense fires often bring out biblical terminology. The Colorado Springs wildfire has been described as “apocalyptic” and “hellish.” But what’s being experienced there doesn’t even come close to the biblical description of Hell. Christ called it a place where “the fire…shall never be quenched” (Mark 9:45). In Revelation 20:10, it’s called the “lake of fire” and is described as a place of eternal torment. In Jesus’ story of the beggar Lazarus and the rich man in Luke 16, He described the rich man in Hades (another name for Hell) as “being in torments.” The rich man cried, “…send Lazarus that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.’”

While some can evacuate and escape earthly wildfires, Hell and its eternal fury is unavoidable for anyone who has not put his or her personal trust in Jesus Christ as Savior. Having seen what a raging wildfire can do should be enough to make anyone think about what can be done to escape the eternal torment of Hell. The solution is a simple one: “[W]hoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.” (Romans 10:13)

In this life, fire doesn’t serve an exclusively negative purpose. Those who are forced to quickly evacuate from threatened homes find that it takes a fire to reveal what is most important to them. Many times only what can be grabbed in a few minutes is preserved. Our focus shouldn’t be solely on earthly possessions but on the things that, as the old adage says, you can’t take with you. The Gaithers summed it up in one of their songs. “…the things that matter the most in this world, they can never be held in our hands. I believe in a hill called Mount Calvary…”

Fire is sometimes needed for growth to take place. It is a natural and necessary part of a forest’s regeneration system. Some trees’ seeds are only released in the heat of intense flames. Suppressing forest fires too long can actually be detrimental to forests and results in greater loss when a fire eventually does break out.

There are times when loss serves to strengthen one’s character, determination and faith in God. A refiner’s fire purifies precious metals, such as gold and sliver, and separates them from impure elements. Job is often viewed as the person who suffered the most devastating personal losses, but he spoke confidently of the result of such tragedy. “When He (God) has tested me, I shall come forth as gold.” Job 23:10

Not everyone experiences a physical fire, but times of pain, suffering or loss are almost universally inevitable. God gave a promise to Israel that should comfort and encourage anyone who is His child: “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by your name; You are Mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; And through the rivers, they shall not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, nor shall the flame scorch you.” Isaiah 43:1, 2)

God walks with His children through the “fires” of this life, and through salvation in His Son, we are spared from the fires of eternity.

Gayle Virkler