Tuesday, January 1, 2013

(1Cor. 3:13) His work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each man's work...... If it is burned up, he will suffer loss; he himself will be saved, but only as one escaping through the flames.

Right there in the middle, see it?  "and the fire will test the quality of each man's work...."   the fire will test the quality of each man's work.  The instrument in which God is testing for "quality assurance" is fire.  When I first think of fire, I think of damage, destruction. Most of the time, I don't think of refinement, or creation from fire.  That's what God has in mind when using fire in our life. Creating a work of art. Making a beautiful piece of pottery that will be of use for something.  If the element in the fire is metal, it becomes flexible enough to be bent and reshaped.  If the element in the fire is clay, it becomes hardened and is a vessel that is useful in life, be it a carafe to hold wine, or a ceramic basket to hold bread for the dining room table.  What if the element is coal, we know the shine of the furnace on coal; diamond. sparkling, faceted, shimmering.....amazing isn't it?  Damage, destruction is the common thought for being brought through fire. But God knows it's not the damage, it's the beautification, the shine. The hardening to make us a useful vessel. The flexibility in fire to form rigid metal beam to become a hinge on a garden gate.  Forged. That's the word for me in 2013. I will be tested for quality assurance of my work.  Lord, give me a forged heart. 


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