Do you ever feel like you’re getting burned by God? Not in a literal sense but that He is letting you walk through the intense heat and flame of trial in order to refine you? I do! Times of refining build our character, make us more like Jesus and teach us how to depend on Him. Times of refining activate our faith because we have to trust God in the midst of painful circumstances. Often we need to spend more time seeking Him just in order to “survive” the refining.
The Refining Time
Every year after harvest farmers must clean away the left over debris from their fields to prepare them for planting. Many farmers set fire to their fields in order to burn the debris. One agriculture website says: “Fire is used to minimize pests and weeds, to remove residue after harvest, and to prepare the field for the next growing season. When used as a management tool for growing certain crops…it rejuvenates the plant and helps it grow healthy and strong.”
Makes me think of these verses on how God refines us:
“For You, O God, have tested us; You have refined us as silver is refined…We went through fire and through water; But You brought us out to rich fulfillment.” Psalm 66:10, 12
“I am the Real Vine and my Father is the Farmer. He cuts off every branch of me that doesn’t bear grapes. And every branch that is grape-bearing he prunes back so it will bear even more.” John 15:1-3
When God is bringing the refining fires into our lives we can trust God to:
+Make the fire just hot enough to burn up the internal debris but not too hot that it will consume us.
+Bring us out on the other side into a stronger and healthier place, prepared for the next season.
Blog title comes from a song of the same name by musician Mitch McVicker.
Rayni Peavy 