Let God Refine You

Let God Refine You "That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ" 1 Peter 1:7 So often in life when we are faced with troubles and trials we wonder if God is really listening to us. Sometimes when we are in the midst of trials we start to wonder - Lord, will it ever end? In case you haven't noticed, it doesn't. But the good news is that with each faith-testing experience, our ability to deal with these trials and tribulations becomes better, and our faith grows stronger! In the scripture above, God compares our faith to a most precious and beautiful metal - gold. But when mined, this precious metal doesn't look very precious! It's dirty looking and black. How does gold become beautiful? A refiner takes the gold and carefully melts it in a melting pot - slowly raising the temperature - but never to the point where it boils. As it melts, slowly the impurities rise to the surface, and is then scooped away. What is left is a beautiful pot of gold, ready to become your next ring or bracelet. Here's the amazing part. The refiner knows his job is done when he can look into the melting pot and see a reflection of himself. The only way gold will become more precious is when it's placed on the fire! In the same way, the impurities of our lives must be exposed to the fire so that the Lord can scoop up the filth that shows itself when we accept Jesus as our savior, and then accept His precious gift of salvation. God removes all the impurities of our life, and frees us from our sins and forgets about them. And then, when it's all said and done, He can look upon us and see the beauty of His reflection, and we are pure as Gold in His sight. Robert W. Brock My Daily Devotional Volume Six December 26