Building the Campfire

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One year just a few weeks before Valentines day, there once was a Scout Leader that was trying to think of a fun way to teach them their lesson the next camp out. His boys were teenagers now and were getting to the point where they would begin starting their first relationships, he figured that since Valentines day was just around the corner it would be a good time to bring it up. 

As he sat down reviewing the material for the next camp out he realized that their next merit to work on was the Fire Merit. As he read through it he took particular notice of the different styles of campfires that the boys needed to build and how they had to build it. "ah," he thought, "there's an idea."

The next week they group went on their camp out. After they had set up their camp site the young man sat them down and started the Fire merit with them. When they got to the part where they needed to build a campfire he took just two of the boys to start. "Bill, I want you to build your fire the usual way with Flint and Steel. Remember TKF, Tinder, Kindling, Fuel." Then he turned to the other boy, "Jack, I got something I want you to do, get all your Tinder and Kindling and put it together in a pile."

The boys went out and started getting their supplies, Bill was very careful in selecting his Tinder and Kindling, making sure it was dry. Then he took careful care to build his pile in a way, not putting too much on it. 

Jack took all his stuff and just lay it in a pile like he had been told.

The Young man handed Jack a small can of Gasoline, "Now, I want you to pour this all over your pile and light it with a match. Then I want you to try and build your fire like normal."

Jack poured the gasoline on his pile and lit it. The Gasoline ignited right away and started burning everything so quickly that he didn't have time to grab his bigger logs to try and keep it going.

Bill lit his birds nest and slowly started adding small sticks to the little flame, as he fed it more and more it got a little bigger. Then he added some bigger sticks and continued to build the fire until he was putting small logs onto it. 

The young man gathered all his boys around and started his lecture. 

"Did you boys see how quick the Gasoline ate up the Tinder and Kindling on Jacks fire?" all the boys nodded and smiled. "And you notice how strong the flame is on Bill's fire now? That's gonna last for several hours now." Again the boys all nodded and spoke their agreement.

"The relationships you build in your life with young women are like those two campfires. If you build it haphazardly and throw as much fire as you can onto it, it's going to burn hot and fast. But it's not going to last for very long. Just like Jack's fire, you need to take the time to build a relationship. Start slow and build it up carefully, not giving it too much fuel and snuffing out the small flame. But always feeding it so it doesn't go out."

He continued his story for a bit then they all turned in for the night. They had a long day of hiking in the morning.

~

I've used this analogy before on other social media and thought I'd build it a little more this time. 

Pretty simple concept isn't it? Not much more to explain, Love is like that campfire. You to go too fast, and fuel it with passion and you burn everything away. It takes time and dedication to slowly build a relationship up to something that is going to last. 

Let's take a look at what the Bible says.

"Daughters of Jerusalem, I charge you by the gazelles and by the does of the field: Do not arouse or awaken love until it so desires." Song of Solomon 2:7

"Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the Truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never Fails." 1 Corinthians 13:4-8a

"Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life." Proverbs 4:23

"Flee the evil desires of youth, and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart." 2 Timothy 2:22

Guard your heart, be wise in your relationships, and most importantly always remember to seek God and to do His will in everything. If we are seeking God and making his will our will and his desires our desires it tells us that "He will fulfill the desires of your heart."

God Bless,

    Ryan