Refined by Fire

Our body's natural reaction to physical pain is to recoil or move away from the source as quickly as possible. However, spiritual pain needs to be handled differently. God wants to teach us endurance--much like a long-distance runner builds up strength in training - so that we can fully benefit from what He is developing in our hearts. He uses trials as a refining fire to purify us like gold and bring us to greater spiritual maturity. As we realize that we are actually being made more complete through our adversities, we'll begin to face challenging times with confidence that He always has our best interest in mind. While a worldly viewpoint sees hope and joy in the midst of dark times as naïve, a spiritual perspective discerns that we're really progressing on a journey toward life at its fullest. We can be filled with supernatural joy, knowing that the Lord is making us into world-changing spiritual warriors. God is always at work in our lives. Even during seasons of adversity, He wants to accomplish something powerful and good. How should this knowledge affect our response? We must learn to choose rejoicing during difficult times. This doesn't mean we have to be happy about the hardship itself. Instead, joy comes from drawing close to the Lord and believing steadfastly that through His redemptive power, He is growing and preparing us. If your usual response to trials is anxiety, anger, or depression, the idea of having joy in the midst of a negative situation might not seem logical. However,  on your unique independent spiritual journey, if you look beneath the surface, you will discover that this biblical directive makes sense for several reasons. In these times, our defender, the Holy Spirit, provides comfort (protection and encouragement). "In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed." - 1 Pet. 1:6-7 (ISV).

Motivation

Most people work hard if they have a purpose and reason. Visible throughout the human race, some people are motivated about almost anything and others are motivated by almost nothing. Proverbs has much to say about the one who works hard and the alternative. {Proverbs 10:4, "Poor is he who works with a negligent hand, But the hand of the diligent makes rich;" Proverbs 10:26, "Like vinegar to the teeth and smoke to the eyes, So is the lazy one to those who send him;" Proverbs 22:13 "The sluggard says, "There is a lion outside; I will be killed in the streets!"} To some of the first believers Paul would say, "let him who works eat. .  ." - 2 Thessalonians 3:10; the Hebrew writer states it another way, "so that you will not be sluggish, but imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises" - Hebrews 6:12. So what are we to understand? First, we need to be careful not to criticize a person for not working as we think they should; only the Holy Spirit really knows all the details surrounding each person's motivations. Jesus healed many who were unable to work. Second, we should seek to understand their difficulties and encourage them. Third, we should seek ways to help them as the Holy Spirit wants, not as we desire. Christians have an important purpose: praise God in all our actions! The reason is that we are God's children destined for eternity with him, that should be strong motivation. Paul's admonition seeks to avoid bad feelings for those who followed Christ when he says, “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters.” Colossians 3:23 (NIV).

Efficient direction

Many times, people offer great praise to the energy and drive observed in a sports team that demonstrates close coordination and seamless performance of the members. This coordination and interdependence is also observed in the famous U.S. Navy Blue Angel team. Some people say these examples show a spirit of team "oneness." When believers in Jesus are baptized, they become members of the body of Christ which includes other humans who are also on their own unique spiritual journey, allowing the Holy Spirit to prepare them for eternity. They were adopted into God's massive family of which Jesus is the head and all Christians are siblings with other brothers and sisters. "We were all baptized by one Spirit into one body... and we were all given the one Spirit to drink." 1 Cor. 12:13 (NIV). As members of this family, we have benefits and responsibilities. One major responsibility is encouraging others, whether it is other family members or those curious about the family ideals. To accomplish this, the Holy Spirit gives each Christian gifts, perhaps unique, through which He works to accomplish His desires. These gifts may change from time to time depending of what the Holy Spirit needs accomplished. These gifts are supernatural and only come from the Spirit at His discretion. "All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he distributes them to each one, just as he determines." - 1 Cor. 12:11 (NIV). The believer cannot demand these gifts, but they may request and explore, yet they should accept them by following the guidance given by the Holy Spirit to the specific individual to accomplish His goal of unity or oneness for praising God. 

Catastrophe

 Continuing to sin willfully once one knows the truth, is catastrophic for the believer guided by the Holy Spirit. Resisting or rejecting the Holy Spirit is devastating to a person; it equates to unbelief and unbelief was the reason Jesus could do few miracles in His hometown. "And He could do no miracle there except that He laid His hands on a few sick people and healed them" - Mk. 6:5. (NASV) This is powerful! He "could do" few miracles could also be stated, He 'no power to do' many miracles because of their unbelief. Disregarding His guidance (e.g. once one knows the truth) is almost as severe as premeditated lying to him. When Ananias and Sapphira lied to the Holy Spirit, they paid with their physical lives. Based such observations, Paul stated, "How much more severely do you think someone deserves to be punished who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, who has treated as an unholy thing the blood of the covenant that sanctified them, and who has insulted the Spirit of grace?" - Hebrews 10:29 (NIV) The work of Jesus provides the only way to remove sins. If one rejects this work, he rejects everything that God is and everything He has given. It is continuously insulting the Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit. This deflates grace and robs Him of the power to act in beneficial ways. The message of Jesus is precious and must never be spurned, rejected, discounted, treated lightly, or ignored. The message of Jesus is precious, and to reject this message is to insult all that is holy. As we follow our unique independent spiritual journey, we must ask the Holy Spirit for guidance.

Die to unrighteousness

When we drive a vehicle, we have taken on a massive responsibility, to move ourselves and perhaps some passengers from one place to another while not harming other people or property along the way. Most times keeping the automobile on the roadway and "between the lines," is not usually critically challenging. When we consider this is a journey, we must make many choices, but the primary one is the desired endpoint. If yours is the only auto on the roadway for a time, the choice to accelerate or decelerate slightly usually causes few issues. All these choices change when there are other autos on the roadway around us. When we share the roadway with others who have different driving abilities, practices, goals, and personalities, we may find ourselves in a place which can almost turn into a battleground. This experience becomes particularly acute when there are intersections along the roadway. Radical changes in direction can be precarious if adequate provisions have not been made. Many years ago, one culture developed a travel element called a "roundabout," to ease these intersection difficulties. When using this method, roadway traffic did not stop when an intersection was encountered, all traffic went into a circular pathway merging in and out until they could safely change directions. Designed primarily for horse drawn traffic to avoid stopping, this method has remained in some areas until today. This solution was all but replaced by building overpasses, in which one vehicle pass above the others. All Christians are on a spiritual pathway towards heaven. This is a pathway that allows each one time to be sanctified, or become more dedicated to God; people move at different speeds along this pathway. There are many other pathways Christians encounter on this spiritual journey; a major challenge is to choose the proper direction along this journey. When intersections of life and faith occur along this journey, the resulting pathway and subsequent results are not always the ones we might desire. Along this life journey, each of us must make many choices; some will not have the result we anticipate. While an example about driving and death may sound scary, the only way we can stay on this pathway and reach the goal is to die, or be separated from, distractions of the world. We must die and die and die. Every day we die to the things that supposedly make us strong in this world. Every day we kill the need to have more, to be more. Every day we die for Him. Our lives need to guided and empowered by the Holy Spirit.

Obedience

I read once of a person who remarked: "I've yet to meet a Christian whose knowledge didn't exceed his obedience." His point was simple: Most Christians know far more about God's truth than they live. Since the Holy Spirit lives within the Christian and is leading us toward greater sanctification (holiness to God), this should not surprising. In order to escalate this process, we need to allow the Holy Spirit to direct more of our actions. We need to be diligent in searching and seeking God's truth and then acting on our understanding. "For all who are being led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God." - Rom. 8:14.

Living Water

We may marvel at this statement about water. Why such a big deal about water. Besides being an almost universal cleaner, in the middle East, clean water was very scarce in some areas. Webster defines addiction as, "compulsive need for and use of a habit-forming substance (such as heroin, nicotine, or alcohol) characterized by tolerance and by well-defined physiological symptoms upon withdrawal; broadly; persistent compulsive use of a substance known by the user to be harmful." Humans are addicted to water, they need it to survive. "On the last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and cried out, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as[a] the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’” Now this he said about the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were to receive, for as yet the Spirit had not been given, because Jesus was not yet glorified," - John 7:37-39 {ESV}. Jesus was looking forward to the outpouring of the Spirit and the time when the Holy Spirit lives inside those who believe in him. That time is now! This outpouring isn't a limited supply of water like a cistern, but an unlimited supply of refreshment like an artesian well. It isn't a well of water that sometimes goes dry in the long hot summer, but a supply that continuously overflows. And what is this water, this source of refreshment? The Holy Spirit! The Helper Jesus sends to us. So why don't we experience the overflow? Could it be because we don't seek this overflow, don't expect this overflow, and don't ask Jesus to send this overflow (Luke 11:13; Romans 15:13; cf. John 4:13-14)? When this source is in our being, it is a continual guide along our unique individual spiritual journey.