(Originally written in July 2008, during the hardest season of life I had ever faced up until that time)
"For God, who said, 'Let light shine out of darkness,'
made his light shine in our hearts
to give us the light
of the knowledge of God’s glory
displayed in the face of Christ.
But we have this treasure in jars of clay
to show that this all-surpassing power
is from God and not from us.
We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed;
perplexed, but not in despair;
persecuted, but not abandoned;
struck down, but not destroyed.
We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus,
so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body.
For we who are alive are always being given over to death
for Jesus’ sake, so that his life
may also be revealed in our mortal body."
The Lord wants to be glorified in His children's everyday lives.
Many times throughout our lives we encounter hardships and difficulties of all kinds.
There's nothing we can do to change this... we live in a dying, hurting world.
But we can decide how we will respond when trouble hits.
We can let Jesus be magnified through our response, or we can dishonor Him by succumbing to our trials; not letting Him prove His power through us.
To succumb means
to submit to an overpowering force or yield
to an overwhelming desire;
give up or give in.
to submit to an overpowering force or yield
to an overwhelming desire;
give up or give in.
Does this honor and glorify and magnify Jesus??
Our Lord is merciful, He doesn't heap trials on us just because He can or wants to; He allows different trails and hardships into our lives for very specific reasons and purposes. We are told to consider it PURE JOY when we face trials (James 1:2). Why?
"Because you know that the testing of your faith developes perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything."
The trials God allows are for our good. He wants to make us mature and complete, not lacking anything! The child of God who says "God doesn't care about me." while going through a trial (or at all!) knows so very little. What an utterly backward thing to say- especially while in the midst of the fire! Does this person not know -does He not understand- that the fire he faces is proof that God cares about Him? Can he not see that God cares so much about him that He is willing to do whatever it takes to make him mature and complete, so that he won't lack anything as a child of God?
Rather, the child of God who is faced with a trial should lift up His hands and praise the Lord with all his being that God has not given up on him and is so wonderfully concerned with working in him until he is made complete.
Complete. Is this not what we all, as His children, desire-
to be made complete?
One morning the truth of all this finally struck home as I considered what happens when I punch my bread dough down after it has risen for an hour. Doesn't this ruin my dough? Why punch it down? Was all that rising time and effort wasted? Absolutely not!
In my eagerness to understand exactly WHY I must punch down my bread dough, and what exactly this does to make my bread better, I did some research (good ol' Google!), and this is what I found:
1) Punching down the dough after it has risen expels some of the carbon dioxide and redistributes the yeast cells evenly throughout the dough for a new source of food. Too much carbon dioxide chokes the yeast, so deflating the dough is actually good for it.
2) When the dough is deflated, the temperature is equalized throughout the dough, so that when it is shaped, the dough can rise evenly.
3) When punched, the gluten in the dough is allowed to relax, making the dough easier to shape in the next step.
(a special thank you to all those patient readers who bore with me through that brief overview of bread dough. Ahem.)
So, from what I discovered, bread dough needs not only to rise, but it also needs to be punched back down in order for it to turn out well.
So that it will be complete, not lacking anything.
It is the same way for us in our trials. We NEED to be 'struck down' every once in a while. It is part of the process. This is how we are made complete. But we must not forget the promise that is found directly after the words 'struck down' in 2 Corinthians 4:9 ...
"...but not destroyed."!!!
Praise the Lord! Yes, He brings us low, but it is in love and He does not let it destroy us. He does not give us more than we are able to bear. "As a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear Him; for He knows how we are formed, He remembers that we are dust." (Psalm 103:13-14). He knows just how much fire we can handle, and when we learn the lessons He has for us through that fire, then He will remove it for a while. Like silver, He is refining us.
But praise God that He never stops working in us- He never gives up on any of us, even the most stubborn, struggling, and resistant of His children.
I will close with this last little story...
The Silversmith
Some time ago a few ladies met to study the Scriptures. While reading the third chapter of Malachi, they came upon a remarkable expression in the third verse:
"And He shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver."
One lady decided to visit a silversmith and report to the others what he said about the subject. She went accordingly and, without telling him the reason for her visit, begged the silversmith to tell her about the process of refining silver. After he had fully described it to her, she asked, "Sir, do you sit while the work of refining is going on?" "Oh, yes ma'am," replied the silversmith, "I must sit and watch the furnace constantly, for if the time necessary for refining is exceeded in the slightest degree, the silver will be injured." God sees it necessary to put His children into the furnace; but His eye is steadily intent on the work of purifying and His wisdom and love are both engaged in the best manner for us. Our trials do not come at random, and He will not let us be tested beyond what we can endure.
Before she left, the lady asked one final question, "How do you know when the process is complete?"
Some time ago a few ladies met to study the Scriptures. While reading the third chapter of Malachi, they came upon a remarkable expression in the third verse:
"And He shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver."
One lady decided to visit a silversmith and report to the others what he said about the subject. She went accordingly and, without telling him the reason for her visit, begged the silversmith to tell her about the process of refining silver. After he had fully described it to her, she asked, "Sir, do you sit while the work of refining is going on?" "Oh, yes ma'am," replied the silversmith, "I must sit and watch the furnace constantly, for if the time necessary for refining is exceeded in the slightest degree, the silver will be injured." God sees it necessary to put His children into the furnace; but His eye is steadily intent on the work of purifying and His wisdom and love are both engaged in the best manner for us. Our trials do not come at random, and He will not let us be tested beyond what we can endure.
Before she left, the lady asked one final question, "How do you know when the process is complete?"
"That's quite simple," replied the silversmith.
"When I can see my own image in the silver, the refining process is complete."
~ Unknown
"When I can see my own image in the silver, the refining process is complete."
~ Unknown
So let us praise the Lord when we go through trials and hardships. Let us love Him even more through the hardest and most intense times. Let us sing praises to Him while we suffer. Let us remember that He feels our pain and holds all of our tears... He is the one who walks beside us and holds our hands through it all. He is our Shepherd- let's let Him do the leading, and remember that our part is simply to follow and trust completely. Let us bring glory and honor to His precious name as we walk through the fire.
Let the power of the Lord be the message
that is shouted to the world by the megaphone of our trials...
...and may He be magnified in His children as He makes us perfect, mature and complete.
