[Keep Walking: The Power of Perseverance] Persevere in the PainShembull

Refined As Silver

In the book of Isaiah, we find a passage where God told the prophet that Israel was tested and refined not as silver, but in the furnace of affliction. Silver is refined through extreme high and low temperatures. The people of Israel were tested to the point that they thought they were being destroyed, but they survived through all their hardships. Tribulation is a furnace of affliction. The word tribulation comes from a word that was used as a reaping tool to cut the wheat and discard the chaff at the same time. Many tribulations come so that we discard the chaff, that which is not genuine and true. They come to shake us and rid us of our imperfections and flaws. Tribulations are designed to perfect us. Pain is the greatest purifier, just like fire purifies gold.

Charles Stanley, a great Baptist preacher from the state of Georgia, has repeatedly stated that nothing you can do can make God love you more or love you less. He is ready to lift you up as you come to Him in repentance. Repentance is a change of mind and of heart. It basically means you acknowledge your very bad decisions and decide to never repeat them. God’s love is so profound and so big that you could dig deep down into the ground and reach the place of the dead, and He would be there. You could fly away from Him or run away from Him to where the sun rises in the east, and He would be there too. Anywhere you go, God is already there. He is all around you, in front of you, and behind you. And He puts His hand on you to keep you safe. He will always guide you back to Him. His greatest desire is for you to turn back to Him. Repentance is also an act of turning back to God. This is all He is waiting for and expecting from you: to turn back to Him. He is more than ready to embrace you, just as the father embraced his prodigal son. After all you have gone through, your loving God is waiting for you with a new robe, a precious ring, and a great celebration. He wants to restore you by lifting you up and by celebrating your return.

Remember, nothing you have done can make God love you less. Only He can take your pain away. No one can truly weigh how much pain you carry, but God can not only understand your pain, but feel it. Jesus is still calling all who are tired and heavy-laden to give them rest.

Come back to God. There is no place like God’s place!

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