Thursday, January 8, 2009

~Refining Fire~

I've had this email in my arsenal of inspiring email and wanted to share it with you today. It fits perfectly with all that I have blogged about this week. Enjoy!

Malachi 3:3 says: "He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver."

This verse puzzled some women in a Bible study and they wondered what this statement meant about the character and nature of God.

One of the women offered to find out the process of refining silver and get back to the group at their next Bible Study.

That week, the woman called a silversmith and made an appointment to watch him at work. She didn't mention anything about the reason for her interest beyond her curiosity about the process of refining silver.

As she watched the silversmith, he held a piece of silver over the fire and let it heat up. He explained that in refining silver, one needed to hold the silver in the middle of the fire where the flames were hottest as to burn away all the impurities.

The woman thought about God holding us in such a hot spot; then she thought again about the verse that says: "He sits as a refiner and purifier of silver."

She asked the silversmith if it was true that he had to sit there in front of the fire the whole time the silver was being refined.

The man answered that yes, he not only had to sit there holding the silver, but he had to keep his eyes on the silver the entire time it was in the fire. If the silver was left a moment too long in the flames, it would be destroyed.

The woman was silent for a moment.

Then she asked the silversmith, "How do you know when the silver is fully refined?"

He smiled at her and answered, "Oh, that's easy -- when I see my image in it"

If today you are feeling the heat of the fire, remember that God has his eye on you and will keep watching you until He sees His image in you.

Life is a coin. You can spend it anyway you wish, but you can only spend it once."


Have a wonderfully blessed day!

7 comments:

  1. Oh wow Jennifer! I came by to read your TT post but received a double blessing. That is so beautiful & amazing...I can't even find the words & here I sit all choked up. I can't wait to share this with dh tonight. It makes you look at the fires we go through is a different way. I always knew the refining process was important and necessary but to think the Lord sitting there all the time watching & waiting for His image to shine through -wow!!! (I guess I did find the words :-) )

    Thank you so much for sharing!

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  2. Beautiful my friend, love you.

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  3. I've read your post from 1/5/09 and it was very inspirational and encouraging. I see why Beth gave you that award.

    Congratulations!! You deserve it!!

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  4. This is just awesome!!! I knew that this meant about God refining us and purifying us--but to see this through the eyes of a silversmith!!

    Awesome, awesome, awesome!!

    Beth

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  5. How awesome is this?! I love it! I'm so glad I stopped back by today. Love ya, and thanks so much, so very much for sharing.

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  6. Thank you my friend! You don't know how much you are blessing me! I am feeling that hot flame, especially this evening. It is so easy to want to give up. But I really don't want that. I want Him to see His image in me. So, I will keep pressing forward believing that it is for His greater good.

    Thank you for sharing my friend!

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  7. I posted this way back when I started blogging because it is so powerful! I love it! Thank you for sharing it again. It is a great reminder.

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Thank you for stopping by today and sharing your heart felt thoughts with me. As we ride "Through the Storms of Life" together, chances are...your situation is different than mine. However, we serve the same awesome God, King of Kings who is in complete control and it all belongs to Him anyway...He wants to give you the very best. Be encouraged my friend, God loves you!

Thank you again for taking the time to visit me at "Through the Storms of Life".

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