He's Still God in The Fire

[Preparation]

God has a certain way of helping us grow that we often confuse with punishment, but the preparation is what allows us to be better vessels. I remember when I played sports, whenever Coach would start getting out his stopwatch, you could almost hear the excitement leave our bodies. It meant that it was time for conditioning. It wasn't always fun, but it helped our bodies get in better shape for the competition. It allowed us to play at a higher level, it got our bodies used to the conditions.

[Refining]

God is a refiner. That makes all the difference.  A refiner's fire does not destroy, it does not burn up. It refines, it purifies. It separates the impurities, and it leaves the subject intact. The refiner wants to see the best result, and won't stop until it is finished. God refines us, often times by fire. Not to punish us, but to bring out the best condition we can be in. God is still God, even in the fire. God is still God in your test. God allows us to go through fire so that we can be better than what we were before. But God also allows us to through fire so that others can see what the refiner can do.

[Fire as a testimony]

In Daniel chapter 3, we see the 3 Hebrew boys tossed in the fiery furnace. King Nebuchadnezzar had the furnace set 7 times hotter, so hot that the guards were killed just by the flames. He was so sure that nothing could save the 3 boys. But Nebuchadnezzar saw a 4th man. He saw someone in the fire with them, but how could that be? He just had 3 boys threw in right? Rather than letting his children burn up, God stepped in. God showed the king, that even in the fire, He was still God. When we go through fire, God will always be there, whether He pulls us out of it, or walks with us through it.

[Closing]

Be encouraged today, knowing that God is still God, even in the fire. You're being refined, and you are walking of the furnace as a walking testimony.

Isaiah 43:2
"When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee."