Refiner of silver

I read this in a newsletter this week and found it tremendously encouraging.

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.

Follow my train of thought here

In the last couple of days I've only been able to think about death and autism. So to take my mind off it, I borrowed a book* from the library. I picked it because of the interesting cover, and then found out it was all about death and feminism. Great.

Well, actually, it was great. It's particular focus was the suffragette movement led by Mrs Pankhurst at the beginning of the last century.

I was moved to think that I can now vote because women who believed strongly enough in their cause had the courage to stand up against society and even go to prison for their beliefs.

Nowadays, it's a no-brainer that women get the vote. Back then, it was shocking, unseemly, even un-Christian.

My mind went off on two tracks: firstly, would I be willing to stand up for my beliefs and even face persecution for them. Sometimes, I'm not so sure.

My second train of thought is around family and causes. In the book, Kitty fought for suffrage, but her daughter and family suffered because of it. It reminds me of Nelson Mandela's biography - his two marriages broke up because of the strain of the apartheid cause. The story of the great missionary William Carey is similar. His work in India was groundbreaking, but his wife went mad.

It seems like many 'great' people have difficult family lives. Their personal relationships get swamped by their cause or their business or their calling. Often, the less powerful in their families suffer as a result of their one-eyed dedication.

The question is: is that ok? Is it just part of life? Does someone always have to suffer in the wake for great and worthy things to be done? Is Nelson Mandela any less great because of his broken relationships? Is William Carey's work still worthwhile, even though his family life was a disaster? Did Emily Pankhurst's suffragettes achieve a greater good for women even though those around them suffered for a while?


*Fallen Angels by Tracey Chevalier. Fabulous.