"He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver."

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 sit there in front of the fire the whole time the silver was being refined. 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.

Forgiveness

A story tells that two friends were walking through the desert. During some point of the journey, they had an argument, and one friend slapped the other one in the face. The one who got slapped was hurt, but without saying anything, he wrote in the sand:
"TODAY MY BEST FRIEND SLAPPED ME IN THE FACE"

They kept on walking, until they found an oasis, where they decided to take a bath. The one who had been slapped got stuck in the mire and started drowning, but his friend saved him. After he recovered from the near drowning, he carved on a stone:

"TODAY MY BEST FRIEND SAVED MY LIFE"

The friend, who had slapped and saved his best friend, asked him,"After I hurt you, you wrote in the sand, and now, you carve on a stone, why?" The other friend replied: "When someone hurts us, we should write it down in sand, where the winds of forgiveness can erase it away, but when someone does something good for us, we must engrave it in stone, where no wind can ever erase it."

Can you take it with you?

There once was a rich man who was near death. He was very grieved because he had worked so hard for his money and wanted to be able to take it with him to heaven. So he began to pray that he might be able to take some of his wealth with him.
An angel heard his plea and appeared to him. "Sorry, but you can't take your wealth with you."

The man begged the angel to speak to God to see if He might bend the rules. The man continued to pray that his wealth could follow him. The angel reappeared and informed the man that God had decided to allow him to take one suitcase with him. Overjoyed, the man gathered his largest suitcase and filled it with pure gold bars and placed it beside his bed.

Soon afterward, he died and showed up at the gates of heaven to greet St. Peter.
St. Peter, seeing the suitcase, said, "Hold on, you can't bring that in here!"
The man explained to St. Peter that he had permission and asked him to verify his story with the Lord. Sure enough, St. Peter checked it out, came back and said, "You're right. You are allowed one carry-on bag, but I'm supposed to check its contents before letting it through."

St. Peter opened the suitcase to inspect the worldly items that the man found too precious to leave behind and exclaimed, "You brought pavement?"

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"The great street of the city of heaven was of pure gold..."
- Revelation 21:21
"Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust can destroy and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."
- Matthew 6:19-21

When I Say, "I am a Christian"

When I say..."I am a Christian" I'm not shouting "I am saved" I'm whispering I was lost" That's why I chose this way

When I say ..."I am a Christian" I don't speak of this with pride. I'm confessing that I stumble and need someone to be my guide.

When I say... "I am a Christian" I'm not trying to be strong. I'm professing that I'm weak and pray for strength to carry on.

When I say... "I am a Christian" I'm not bragging of success. I'm admitting I have failed and cannot ever pay the debt.

When I say... "I am a Christian" I'm not claiming to be perfect, My flaws are too visible, but God believes I am worth it.

When I say... "I am a Christian" I still feel the sting of pain, I have my share of heartaches which is why I speak His name.

When I say... "I am a Christian" I do not wish to judge. I have no authority. I only know I'm loved.

A Logistical Nightmare

Moses and the people were in the desert, but what was he going to do with
them?

They had to be fed, and feeding 2 or 3 million people requires lot of food.According to the Quartermaster General in the Army, it is reported that Moses would have to have had 1500 tons of food each day. Do you know that
to bring that much food each day, two freight trains, each at least a mile long, would be required! Besides you must remember, they were out in the desert, so they would have to have firewood to use in cooking the food. This would take 4000 tons of wood and a few more freight trains, each a mile long, just for one day. And just think, they were forty years in transit. And Oh yes! They would have to have water. If they only had enough to drink and wash a few dishes, it would take 11,000,000 gallons each day and a freight train with tank cars, 1800 miles long, just to bring water! And then another thing! They had to get across the Red Sea at night. Now, if they went on a narrow path, double file, the line would be 800 miles long and would require 35 days and nights to get through. So there had to be a space in the Red Sea, 3 miles wide so that they could walk 5000
abreast to get over in one night. But then, there is another problem...............each time they camped at the end of the day, a
campground two-thirds the size of the state of Rhode Island was required, or a total of 750 square miles long............think of it! This much space for camping. Do you think Moses figured all this out before he left Egypt?

I think not! You see, Moses believed in God. God took care of these things
for him. Now do you think God has any problem taking care of all your needs

The Cross

The CROSS

A young man was at the end of his rope, seeing no way out, he dropped to his knees in prayer."Lord, I can't go on," he said. "I have too heavy a cross to bear."

The Lord replied, "My son, if you can't bear its weight, just place your cross inside this room. Then, open that other door and pick out any cross you wish."

The man was filled with relief and said, "Thank you Lord," and he did as he was told. Upon entering the other room, he saw many crosses; some so large the tops were not visible. Then, he spotted a tiny cross leaning against a far wall.

"I'd like that one, Lord," he whispered. The Lord replied, "My son, that is the cross you just brought in."

When life's problems seem overwhelming, it helps to look around and see what other people are coping with. You may consider yourself far more fortunate than you imagined.

YOUR CROSS

Whatever your cross
Whatever your pain
There will always be sunshine
After the rain

Perhaps you may stumble
Perhaps even fall
But God's always there
To help you through it all

I asked God for...

I asked God for strength, that I might achive,
I was made weak,that I might learn humbly to obey.

I asked for health, that I might do greater things,
I was given infirmity, that I might do better things.

I asked for riches, that I might be happy,
I was given poverty, that I might be wise.

I asked for power, that I might have the praise of men,
I was given weakness, that I might feel the need of God.

I asked for all things, that I might enjoy life,
I was given life, that I might enjoy all things.

I got nothing that I asked for,but everything I hoped for.
Almost despite myself, my unspoken prayers were answered.

Don't Quit

When things go wrong, as they sometimes will,
When the road you are trudging seems all uphill,
when the funds are low & the bebts are high,
And you want to smile, but you have to sigh,
When care is pressing you down abit,
Reat if you must, but don't quit.
Life is queer with its twists & turns,
As everyone of us sometimes learns,
And many a failure turns about,
When he might have won had he struck it out;
Don't give up though the pace seems slow,
You may succeed with another blow.
Success is failure turned inside out,
The silver tint of the clouds of doubt,
And you never can tell how close you are,
It may be near when it seems so far;
So stick to fight when you're hardest hit,
It's when things seem worse,that you must not quit.