The Refiner

Throughout scripture, we see an abundance of imagery and metaphors concerning the topic of refinement. The refining that all of us are subject to in our faith walk is a painful one, but necessary in the sanctification process and becoming more like Jesus. In the face of hurt and suffering, I allowed myself to go down a road where I no longer recognized who I was, my identity masked by my own bitterness. When I reached the end of myself and could no longer tolerate who I had become, my prayer was for the Lord to refine me and make me more like Him. Fortunately for me, as soon as I opened the door for the Lord to change me, He answered my prayer and I have been going through the painful yet beautiful process ever since.

Often, when I think of refining, although throughout scripture it describes it as the refiner’s fire, the imagery I see is that of chiseling stone when making a sculpture. The chiseling of the stone takes off the excess until what is left is a perfect work of art. To my surprise, upon further inspection, this imagery is also used in scripture to describe this process. In Proverbs 11:2 AMP, it states, “When pride comes [boiling up with an arrogant attitude of self-importance], then come dishonor and shame, But with the humble [the teachable who have been chiseled by trial and who have learned to walk humbly with God] there is wisdom and soundness of mind.” I have always viewed pride as thinking higher of yourself than you ought, but there is another part of pride that I had an abundance of. I have learned that constantly looking inward at myself, my shortcomings and mistakes, and how everyone views me is also a form of selfishness and pride. Tim Keller has stated, “The essence of gospel-humility is not thinking more of myself or thinking less of myself, it is thinking of myself less” (Keller, 32). Of course, my first reaction to this realization of my prideful nature was panic and being overwhelmed by the weight of my own sin. However, after I had brought this to the Lord and pleaded with Him to refine me, I was met with nothing but love. I was reminded of the parable of the prodigal son in John 15:11-32. He left his father to pursue his selfish ambitions and squandered his wealth, resulting in working in the field feeding pigs. He finally came home, filled with shame and regret, expecting to work as one of his father’s servants. When he arrived, he was only met with celebration and the love of his father, running to his son to embrace him and welcome him home.

1 Peter 1:6-7 NASB states, “In this you greatly rejoice, even though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been distressed by various trials, so that the proof of your faith, being more precious than gold which is perishable, even though tested by fire, may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.” Although the Lord puts us through trials and tribulations to test our faith, we can be strengthened by the fact that we are being formed into His likeness and that He loves us enough to not keep us as we are. While I have been going through my own set of trials, I did not detect that this was the Lord’s way of strengthening my faith and making me more like Him. In that moment, I prayed for the Lord to take it away. However, when I look back at even the difference in myself from the past year alone, I am encouraged by how far the Lord has brought me and can rejoice and give Him glory even though I am not out of it yet. Although circumstances may not change, the Lord may be changing you through these trials, as He did for me. Of course, I have not been perfect in this process. I don’t always treat it gracefully, but making that conscious effort to keep my eyes on Jesus instead of my circumstances every day has been essential. This process takes time, much like the process of chiseling a sculpture made of stone. It is a meticulous and detail-oriented process of breaking away the excess, but the result is beautiful and makes the wait worth it.

References

Keller, T. The Freedom of Self Forgetfulness. 10Publishing. 2012.