The Cleansing Fire

I was reading a book on my kindle, and read this.... it blew me away...

God allows bad things to happen to people who are following him because it’s good for us, because we need to be purified.”

“Huh?”

“Like smelting gold. The goldsmith brings the heat up, and the impurities rise to the surface. When he skims the junk off the top, he looks into the vat. The clearer he sees his own reflection, the purer the gold. That’s what God does with us. He turns up the heat, allowing us to go through bad things, so we can be purified, so we can grow."

To add to it, I think it is a test to see if you are still going to praise HIM in the hallway when things get bad. Or will you turn your back on Him when you get in the valley.

I'm reminded of Job even as I type this out. First off, the devil had to get permission from God just to send trials his way. (Let me put a kickstand right here for a second)

God is your keeper. Remember when you were little and you and your siblings, cousins, friends would call "dibs" on riding in the front seat? If you called it (and actually made it to the seat lol), it was yours. If you were out and about, every time you got out, you were determined to keep that seat for yourself. You might not have gotten out of the car, enduring the heat (fire) just to still lay claim on the seat. It was yours and nobody could have it unless you gave it to them. I repeat God is your keeper! We belong to Him. He will not put more on us than we can bare. He created us, so he knows our limits!

Job was faithful to God. When he lost everything, he never turned away from Him. His children died.... His sheep, camels, and servants were gone. His wife was telling him to curse God so that meant he stood alone in his faith... He basically had nothing but held on to God because he knew that the Almighty had him.

Then the devil asked permission to touch Job's body. God was like "Sure but you can't end his life" He knew what kind of soldier He had in Job. He broke out in painful sores and boils all over his body. He was in such bad shape that when the people found out about his troubles and went to check on him, they couldn't even talk to the man because he was in so much pain.

Imagine if Job lived in 2024. No house, no car, no job, all of the material things that some put so much stock in...

..:: GONE ::..

About as fast as you just blinked.

Sometimes our choices can put us in a "Job" season. God is telling you to go left and you went right. The left side may have seemed from a distance that it was all hills and wouldn't take you to where you needed to be. But the right side was flat earth with meadows beautiful flowers, shade trees and a stream. But what you can't see - and God could - was the way to the left may have looked a little bumpy but He was going to carry you through it supplying all of your needs. The right side was full of beasts or sin that will take you out of His perfect will. Leaving you alone to get devoured, where you could starve, become thirsty, or possibly die.

Don't get so caught up in the fire. Don't get so consumed in the "why me?". Allow God to mold you like clay. Even the clay has to go into the fire to be made into something new. If He does have to get you to the point where He has to "burn off" some of the grime that has attached itself to you, think about how you are going to come out on the other side. And you won't even smell like smoke!