James 1:12 Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him.
1 Peter 1:6-7 In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, 7 so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
We’ve been serving in full-time ministry for over 25 years now, and throughout that journey, we’ve certainly experienced our share of trials and tribulations. Sometimes in life, we ask, “Lord, will this ever end?” And if you haven’t noticed, the challenges often don’t stop. But here’s the encouraging part: with every faith-testing moment, our spiritual endurance grows, our character is refined, and our trust in God deepens.
In Scripture, our faith is compared to something incredibly valuable—gold. But straight from the earth, raw gold doesn’t look very impressive. It’s covered in dirt and full of impurities. To become something beautiful, it has to go through the fire. A refiner slowly heats the gold—not to the point of destruction, but just enough to allow the impurities to rise to the surface. He carefully removes the dross, and what remains is pure, radiant, and ready to be shaped into something of great worth.
Here’s the powerful part: the refiner knows his work is complete when he can look into the pot and see a clear reflection of himself.
In the same way, the trials we face are God’s refining fire. They expose the things in us that need to be brought to the surface—not to shame us, but so the Lord can remove them and make us more like Him. He watches us closely, never allowing us to be overwhelmed, always in control. And when He looks upon our lives and sees His reflection—His character, His love, His righteousness—He knows the refining process is working.
So, let’s not despise the trials we’re going through. Let’s embrace them, knowing God uses them to prepare us for greater things. Instead of asking, “Why is this happening?” let’s ask, “Lord, what do You want to teach me through this?” And as we yield to Him in the fire, we will see His hand, His purpose, and—yes—His blessing.
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[worthy_plugins_devotion_single_body]When Elijah went up to to heaven, Elisha took up his mantle and walked in the power of Elijah. The Hebrew word for mantle is "aderet". It's root word is "adir", which means excellent, gallant, glorious, mighty, noble and worthy! Elijah was a man with these qualities. The mantle that Elisha received from Elijah meant a calling which was powerful. Elisha had earned it. When the two first met, Elisha had slaughtered the oxen he was plowing with, and burned them on the wood of their yoke as an offering. Then he followed and served the prophet until the day Elijah was taken miraculously to Heaven.
One of the paradoxes of our walk is that God’s gifts often require work on our part. After He delivered the Israelites from the Egyptians, the Lord led them to the Promised land and told them He was going to "give" it to them. It wasn't long before they realized, however, that they were going to have to fight battles and overcome fortified cities in order to inhabit the land. God did promise that they would not have to fight the battles on their own, but even with this divine advantage the Israelites themselves would be required to destroy their enemies – they would still need to fight.
A good pastor friend of ours told us that his congregation was experiencing some hardships and division. How often does this happen among us? It breaks my heart -- and I believe the Lord weeps over this too.
I came across an old article about "fake physicians". According to this article, many American citizens could be receiving medical treatment from doctors who lied on their medical school loan applications and used the money to pay a broker for fake documents. One guy was arrested and later admitted that he was paid beaucoup bucks to hand out approximately a hundred phony medical documents claiming that his clients completed their training! Can you imagine?!
I came across a powerful parable written by a Haitian pastor illustrating to his congregation the need for total commitment to the Lord.
Yesterday, actor Robert Clary of Hogan's Heroes fame passed away at the age of 96. Upon reading his autobiography, Mr. Clary was the youngest of 14 children. However, 10 of his siblings were tragically killed during the Holocaust. He survived his captivity in the Buchenwald Concentration Camp in 1942. Upon reading his story, and with thanksgiving coming this week in the United States reminded me of another story by Corrie Ten Boom, a Christian survivor of the Holocaust because of her willingness to protect Jews during World War 2.
Scottish minister Alexander Whyte was known for his uplifting prayers in the pulpit. He always found something for which to be grateful. One Sunday morning the weather was so gloomy that one church member thought to himself, "Certainly the preacher won't think of anything for which to thank the Lord on a wretched day like this." Much to his surprise, however, Whyte began by praying, "We thank Thee, O God, that it is not always like this."