Today Devotional - Forged in the Fire!

Romans 5:3-5
3We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. 4And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. 5And this hope will not lead to disappointment.

We all experience pain. We all experience hardship and suffering. Yet somehow God’s word says we can rejoice through it?

In order to grow muscles must be put under stress and tension. This tears down and rebuilds stronger to adapt to the needs of the body. The same goes for our mental and spiritual fitness. When we look at the stress of life as an opportunity to grow we can not only have peace with it, but we can truly learn to rejoice as we trust God knowing he works all things for his Glory.

Every believer has a purpose or mission, yet to get ready for that battle we must be sharpened.

As we think about how a sword is forged, it starts as raw metal in the ground that must be pulled from its dirty complacent life. The next step is melting down and purifying before its poured into a mold, cooled, and prepped for the next phase. It’s then tossed back into a fire until it’s glowing red hot. A blacksmith now smashes the metal rod against an anvil with heavy hammer thousands of times as sparks fly. If you are the sword you probably aren’t feeling so good about this. It hurts, and unless you know what you are going to become you think the entire process is just hell on earth. But with each strike of the hammer, the master craftsman shapes the blade until it’s perfect and ready for battle.

The next step is sharpening… As iron sharpens iron,
so a friend sharpens a friend. (Proverbs 27:17)

Faith is not a solo sport, and sharpening sometimes requires heat and friction… Who do you lean on for sharpening?



REFLECTION
What painful events in your life actually shaped your faith in the past?

God can use all things for his Glory. How can he use your present trial to forge you?

What Friends or mentors in life do you lean on for sharpening?