Refined Glory

Inside the Mind:

He sat by the fire of seven-fold heat,
As He watched by the precious ore.
And closer He bent with a searching gaze
As He heated it more and more.
He knew He had ore that could stand the test
And He wanted the finest gold,
To mold as a crown for the King to wear,
Set with gems of price untold.
So He laid our gold in the burning fire,
Though we fain would have said Him, "Nay."
And He watched the dross that we had not seen,
As it melted and passed away.
And the gold grew brighter, and yet more bright
And our eyes were so dim with tears,
As we saw the fire, not the Master's hand,
And questioned with anxious fear.
Yet our gold shone out with a richer glow,
As it mirrored a Form above,
That bent o'er the fire, though unseen by us
With a look of infinite love.
Can we think that it pleases His loving heart
To cause a moment of pain?
Ah, no, but He saw through the present cross
The bliss of eternal gain.
So He waited there with a watchful eye,
With a love that is strong and sure,
And His gold did not suffer a bit more heat
Than was needed to make it pure!

- Author Unknown

I have heard this gold analogy of the Christian life many times but am still amazed and encouraged every time it pops up in my reading. We might be happy and content just making it through life as a lump of rock, but we often forget that God has called us to a higher purpose – one that requires not a lump of rock, but a unit of pure, refined gold. When we are buried under the discouragement of trials, the fears of the unknown arise in our hearts and we are lured into doubting the sovereign plan of God. All we can see is the fire melting us away. We begin to wonder: How could this be in God’s plan? It doesn’t make sense! I don’t see how this could further His kingdom! It’s not right!

Although all we could see is the fire, we must remember that our God is a loving God and has a plan for us far beyond what we could ever imagine. It does not please Him to see us struggle through trials, but the trials must take place in order to refine us and mold us into His likeness. Nothing… and I mean absolutely nothing takes place in our lives without His sovereign hand guiding us. As the last couple lines say, His gold will not suffer a bit more heat than is needed to make it pure.

And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.
- 2 Corinthians 3:18