Don't think that we are going to give you the answer for "why." We, on occasion (with a whole lot of help from Holy Spirit), can have some profound revelation. However, we are never so amazing that we could come up with "why."
We don't know the "why" but we do know that the Heavenly Father will use the situation you are in to purify you. Listen to this verse...
Malachi 3:3 He will sit like a refiner of silver, burning away the dross. He will purify the Levites, refining them like gold and silver, so that they may once again offer acceptable sacrifices to the Lord. (NLT)
While we were worshipping this morning in church, this verse rose up and landed in my spirit. It's not the first time I have read this or meditated on this verse. I have preached this many times in the past. This verse makes it very clear that the Lord will do 2 things.
1. He will refine you. His goal through the whole process is for you to be purified so that you can once again offer acceptable sacrifices to the Lord.
2. He will sit and wait you out. He is patient. Eternally patient. He can sit while all of your impurities are burned up. He will patiently wait for your bad attitude to be burned up. He will patiently wait for your fear to be burned up. He will patiently wait for you to trust Him. His divine and infinite patience will easily outlast your human and finite stubbornness.
But this wasn't the point of this verse being dropped on me today. Like I said, I have preached this before. The point wasn't what His goal is and how patient He is. There was something new that He wanted to show me. This is what He said to me.
Not only is He watching the silver and gold...
Not only is He watching the purification process...
Not only is He watching the impurities being burned up...
But He is also watching the fire!
The refiner is paying attention to many things while performing his job. The precious metal, the impurities, and (maybe the most crucial to the refining process) the fire.
If the impurities are not coming out and being burned off, it means that the fire is not hot enough and He must stoke the fire. If the precious metals are being burned, it means that the fire is too hot and He must cool it down. Maintaining the proper amount of fire to accomplish the purification is a never ending job. Constantly heating up and cooling down. He wants the impurities out but does not want to harm the precious metal. Thankfully, one of our Heavenly Father's names is...Master. He is not a novice. He is not an amateur refiner. He is not in training. He is the Master. He knows precisely what He is doing.
You are His most precious, most highly regarded treasure. He would not harm you. He cannot even imagine it. His will is for you to be perfected by Him, not by you. He wants the impurities out of you, therefore He must subject you to the fire. He does not bring the fire to your life for harm but for purification. And His eye stays on you and on the fire.
The silver and gold cannot tell the Master when all of the imperfections have been removed. We cannot because we lack perspective. But, from where the Master sits patiently, He can see you, your imperfections, and the fire. None of them escape His purview. The way in which you respond to the fire tells the Master when it is time to remove you from the fire.
I am not saying that He has made this most unfortunate season happen in your life. He will however use it for your best. He will use the fire that is causing you pain and turn it into glory. This may not bring you comfort as to the "why's" of your life. However, I pray that it brings you peace knowing that He is watching the fire. It will not blaze out of His control. It will do nothing that He has not already accounted for. He will turn the destruction of the enemy into a tool for your blessing.
Keep standing!
Josh and Serena
