Refiner's Fire . . .

I got this e-mail from a parent of one of my students. Actually for those of you that know Valerie W, it was her cousin.

Malachi 3:3 says: 'He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver.'

This verse puzzled some women in a Bible study and they wondered what this
statement meant about the character and nature of God.
One of the women offered to find out the process of refining silver and get
back to the group at their next Bible Study. That week, the woman called a
silversmith and made an appointment to watch him at work. She didn't mention
anything about the reason for her interest beyond her curiosity about the
process of refining Silver. As she watched the silversmith, he held a piece of
silver over the fire and let it heat up. He explained that in refining silver,
one needed to hold the silver in the middle of the fire where the flames were
hottest as to burn away all the impurities. The woman thought about God holding
us in such a hot spot; then she thought again about the verse that says: 'He
sits as a refiner and purifier of silver.' She asked the silversmith if it was
true that he had to s it there in front of the fire the whole time. The man
answered that yes, he not only had to sit there holding the silver, but he had
to keep his eyes on the silver the entire time it was in the fire. If the silver
was left a moment too long in the flames, it would be destroyed. The woman was
silent for a moment. Then she asked the silversmith, 'How do you know when the
silver is fully refined?'He smiled at her and answered, 'Oh, that's easy -- when
I see my image in it.'
If today you are feeling the heat of the fire , remember that God has his
eye on you and will keep watching you until He sees His image in you. And,
whatever you're going through, you'll be a better person in the end.
'Life is a coin. You can spend it anyway you wish, but you can only spend
it once.'