Strength and Purity in Fire

As many of you may know, this past year or so has been a large time of transition for me. I was married just under two years ago, and everyday we are still learning about each other and how to be married. I graduated from Purdue in May, and we did not want to stay in West Lafayette. So decisions needed to be made where to move to and what to do next. I felt led to apply for the Teach for America program, and went through a very long interview process with that (4 months) and in the end was not chosen for the program. By then it was just a few months before graduation, so we decided to move to Nashville, TN so that my husband could pursue a career in music. Then spring came, and there was the flooding of Nashville, so we took it as a sign for us to choose a different location. We moved back home to our parents in Northeastern, IN. 


Since then, I keep searching and searching for a job that uses my degree (Communication- Human Relations).  I did farm work that helped me lose some of my extra college pounds but that was a little dangerous, and was not something I enjoyed.  At the end of August, I got a job at a local pizza place delivering pizzas. It was not a job that I was striving for, but I had been praying that God would bring an opportunity... and there it was. It has turned into a pretty fun job, that is paying well. But I keep looking for positions more related to my field of  interest.
I would not directly say that lately has been a time of trials, but it has not been a walk in the park either. I keep praying that the Lord will show us new opportunities. I actually have an interview next week, that I really hope turns into something! 


On a slightly different note, when I first moved north, I felt that my prayer life was really suffering. My mother reminded me that there are mountains and valleys in life, and the low points teach valuable lessons that help one to grow. 

God has really been laying on my heart the book of 1 Peter. I have read it several times lately and just keep coming back to it. 

"Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade- kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God's power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. In 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 your faith- of greater  worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire- may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.  Though you have not seen him, you love him, and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls."     -1 Peter 1:3-9

Strangely enough, the portion I would first like to point out, is actually towards the end, verse 8.

In my mind, there are two bunches of Christians... (hear me out)...

- The first bunch were those that met Jesus. The people that heard him speak, saw his face, met those who had been healed by his miracles, and even those who saw him crucified. There were thousands of people who encountered Jesus during his lifetime here on Earth. 

- The second bunch are the Christians that Peter talks to in this passage. They have only been told about Christ or read the letters and teachings of Christ, and have heard about others' personal experiences with Jesus. 

Obviously, we fall into the second category, because we were not alive when Christ was almost 2,000 years ago.  Peter praises the church today, because we have to have a higher degree of faith than those who encountered Christ in person.  Like those who did meet him, and recognized who he was, we can be filled with joy by knowing that he loves us and has covered us with his grace.  I also really, really love that Peter describes the joy that we have as inexpressible. Many times I am filled with such great joy because of the knowledge of God's love for me, and I really can't express it.... not even to him. 

It is a great comfort to know that God's power is shielding me from any real danger that I may face. It comes to the saying: "If he will put you to it, he will bring you through it." 

Upon deciding to write about this passage, I did a little research on gold smithing and refining. Now, what I found may not be exactly what they did in Biblical times, but it was what they did in the late 1800s. At that time, if you purchased gold, it was very unlikely that it would be pure. Gold smiths, being the professionals that they were, knew the temperatures that gold could withstand as a noble metal in comparison to other alloys. After being placed in the fire, the other elements would rise to the top of the crucible and could be removed. Then, the gold smith just waited for the pure gold to cool, and plink, out it would fall ready to be made into jewelry, coins, etc. 

Peter describes the faith of many followers in using the metaphor of gold in this passage. As part of the second bunch of Christians we have a very different perspective of faith than did the first disciples. I believe that God tests and puts fire under our butts so that we can grow and strengthen. As Christians we are called to be pure as Christ was pure; set apart from the world. 


As a closing thought, think of a piece of wood. The end product that we want is smooth, soft, and pretty without blemishes. How do we get those? With sandpaper! Sometimes God needs to be rough on us, so that our end product is smooth and beautiful. :)