December 21, 2006

Isaiah 54:17

"No weapon that is formed against you will prosper; And every tongue that accuses you in judgment you will condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, And their vindication is from Me," declares the LORD. (NASB ©1995)

December 10, 2006

Story

Just thought I would share a pretty neat story our church leadership gave us a copy of last week.

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

This verse puzzled somec women in a Bible study and they wondered what this statement meantabout the charcter and nature of God.

One of the women offered to find out the process of refining silver and get back to the group at the next Bible Study. That week the woman called a silversmith and made an appoint ment to go watch him at work. She didn't mention anything about the reason for her interest beyond her curiousity about the process of refining silver.

As he 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 if it was true the silversmith had to sit there in front of the firev 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 eye on the silver the entire time it was in te 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 aked the silversmith, "How do you know when the silver is fully refined?" He smiled at her and answeredf, "Oh that's easy-when I see my image in it."

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