The story is told of a group of women that met for Bible study. While studying in the book of Malachi, chapter three, they came across verse three which says:
“He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver;” Malachi 3:3a
This verse puzzled the women and they wondered how this statement applied to the character and nature of God. One of the women offered to find out more about the process of refining silver, and to get back to the group at their next Bible
study. The following week, the woman called up a silversmith and made an appointment to watch him while 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 work, 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 the 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 "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 entire time the silver was being refined. The man answered yes, that not only did he have to sit there holding the silver, but he had to keep his eyes on it the entire time it was in the fire.
If the silver was left even a moment too long in the flames, it would be destroyed.
The woman was silent for a moment. Then she asked the
silversmith, "But 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."
Trials bring pain. No news there... When things are challenging...when they take us to the breaking point... we hurt. Many of us wonder if the pain will ever stop. And when it does, some just sit and wait for it to start again.
Trial by fire. Refining fire.
Why me Lord? It’s easy to ask that when troubles come. We turn our eyes to Heaven and wonder what we’ve done to deserve what we’re going through. Did we make God angry? Is our Heavenly Father getting even with us? Are we so bad that we’re being punished? No. Whether we are dealing with consequences from our own poor decisions... or life’s circumstances... or the choices made by someone else... we hurt. We might not have created the pain... but it’s there and we have to deal with it.
Life gets heated. Sometimes unbearably so.
But it’s in that time of intense fire that things are burned away that never belonged. New discoveries are made. Our way of thinking changes...
We realize how deep our faith goes.
We see how big our God is.
We conclude that life is meant to be lived with others.
We understand that those other people care...and they’ll walk with us.
We learn what to do next time.
We reset our priorities.
We learn that God’s timing is always perfect.
We discover who runs the universe (and it isn’t us).
We develop patience.
We get stronger.
We have the chance to grow closer to Christ.
We appreciate times of peace in our lives more.
We get mad and shake our fists at the universe.
But God... our loving God waits patiently with His arms outstretched.
He understand heartache firsthand. Intense heartache. But God allows us to experience pain so that we can accomplish our purpose.
Those fires in your life...those trials... are making you stronger. And make no mistake...just like the silversmith...when the heat comes your way, God doesn’t move. He is there with you while you endure under it.
Because He knows...
when it seems like you can’t take another minute under the intense flames...
when you feel like throwing in the towel...
It WILL come to an end. You won’t be under that pain forever. You will be victorious. Stronger. You will have new skills, a deeper faith, and a compelling testimony to help others through the same thing. I wish there was some other way to grab these skills... but it seems that pain provides the deepest and most lasting lessons.
And when the fire dies out, Christ will look down on you... with those impurities driven away... and see a pure reflection of Himself in your life.
