The Refiners Fire

If you work with me, this is probably the second time you are hearing this... so sorry, but I had to post it for my wonderful family also.

Malachi 3:3 says:

"And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the Lord an offering in righteousness"

Okay, so here's the amazing part about this...

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 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.'

This made me cry. I often feel this way, and it is amazing to me what the Lord does for us. The part about this I loved the most, is that he sits there holding us in the fire the entire time- which is proof that he never leaves us alone, even when it's hot and painful... he is still there, with us... not just sitting idly by, but he is HOLDING US UNTIL HE CAN SEE HIS IMAGE IN US! I love this... I hope you all do too!!!

This is why I love studying the scriptures, it's what makes it fun for me... the digging in deep to learn the lessons. To REALLY LEARN the lessons.