Morning Devotion on Wednesday, April 17th, 2024

Good morning, et cetera, dear Reader, and welcome to yet another day on this side of the Grave (reason enough, in and of itself, to be grateful today). This morning we'll do something a little different, but first things first. Praise! 😃

Dear Lord, thank You for this day; thank You for Your Word, and the saints. Father, please prepare our hearts and minds to receive Your Word today. Also Lord, we ask that You please bring Your Peace to Israel and Gaza today in a mighty way. Lord God, please drown all of their hatred with Your compassion and soften the hearts of men today. Lord, we also lift up our leaders to You and ask that Your will be done in and through them. And we ask all of these things in Jesus' Name with thanksgiving, Amen. 

Today I'm reminded of a Scripture that first jumped out of the page at me way back in the late 1990's. From the first instant that I ever read it, it became a part of me and I've never forgotten it.

Proverbs 17:3 KJV: 

And, like unto it is this, from the New Testament:

So, what does it all mean? Does it mean,  then, that fire will descend on us from Heaven to therefore consume us? Though it very well could mean that, I don't believe that it does. I think these things speak to the sometimes difficult process of God refining and purifying our hearts. 
Here, just look at what metal has to go through in order to be purified if it's ever to be of any use to the goldsmith:

In the video, we see the ore placed in a crucible and then violently pounded into a powder first of all. Even if that's as far as it went, having our hearts pulverized into dust probably doesn't feel all that great; it's probably part of the process where we begin to cry out to God to please stop in His mercy; but it is His infinite love and mercy that will prevent Him from stopping once He's started the process of purifying your heart. I encourage you to submit to the process. 

This Biblical use of "test" here means purification, rather than answering a set of questions to assess skill and/or knowledge (for the Lord has no need of those kinds of tests, He already knows all). 
Purification, according to the 1828 Webster's Dictionary, means:

 

But just look at item #3 in that definition. God's holy fire is a cleansing agent to the human being, removing from us that which separates us from God (sin) while concurrently making us stronger in His character by removing fallen parts of our sinful nature, the more we submit to the process. 

Q: So what does it look like, submitting to the process? 

A: Some practical ways that you can submit include 1) just doing what you know the Word says to do and abstain from doing anything the Word says NOT to do (walk in obedience as best you can). 2) Praise and thank Him for the very fire which burns (it is His Will that we give thanks in ALL things, see I Thessalonians 5:16-18). 3) Love on everyone (especially enemies) that you possibly can, and, if you cannot love them, just leave them alone. 

Further reading:
All of Proverbs 17 NKJV

Hebrews 12 NKJV

Thank you, dear Reader, for joining me today for morning devotion; I hope this encourages and challenges and comforts you today; may He move in a powerful way in your heart and mind and life today, in Jesus' Name, amen. 💜