Fire Doesn't Define You, It Reveals You
I love those moments when you’re speaking with someone and you say something, then realize they weren’t your words.
That happened to me today, and when I said it, I knew others needed to hear it.
This is what happened.
A friend called and shared something she had walked through in the last 24 hours. As she recounted what had happened, I could hear from her response to it how much she had grown in her relationship with God and how she had matured in her faith. I called out all the things I saw.
- Even though she had a valid reason to freak out and react, she chose to respond by reading the Word, worshipping, and pouring out gratitude to the Lord.
- She awoke to an amazing morning and truly enjoyed it, despite not knowing how things would turn out.
- Mentally, emotionally, and spiritually, she was in a really good place.
I recounted each of these things and more to her, telling her how I saw so much fruit in her life.
Then came the statement that hit us both.
You don’t know what you’ve gained until you’ve walked it out through fire.
How can we know we’ve grown if we’ve never been faced with situations when we have to choose to walk in faith, peace, trust, or hope, or need to cultivate an expectation of His goodness, provision, protection, and more?
We can’t know what’s been refined in us until it’s been tested.
Our human nature doesn’t want to face trials. We do all we can to avoid them, and sometimes, we even blame God when they happen.
But what if we viewed trials from a different perspective and saw how they show us who we’ve become?
I’m not suggesting that we look for and welcome trials or intentionally leave ourselves open to attacks from the enemy. However, God told us we would face hard things - He didn’t hide that fact, but prepared us for it. Not only that, He overcame it all on our behalf and called us the victors.
“‘I have told you these things, so that in Me you may have [perfect] peace. In the world you have tribulation and distress and suffering, but be courageous [be confident, be undaunted, be filled with joy]; I have overcome the world.’ [My conquest is accomplished, My victory abiding.]” (John 16:33, AMP)
“But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory [as conquerors] through our Lord Jesus Christ.” (I Cor. 15:57, AMP)
We get to choose how we’ll respond to the tribulations, distresses, and sufferings we will face. And when we do, we discover who we’ve become through the intimate times of connection and encounters we’ve shared with Him.
If you’ve been walking through fire, I want to encourage you to take a moment and identify ways you’ve grown.
Think about how you would have reacted to a similar situation in the past and recognize the difference in how you’re responding now. Celebrate His faithfulness and the ways you’ve matured in your faith and trust in Him!
And, allow me to say it for Him - “Well done, beloved son/daughter. Well done!”
Living for Him,
Our Mission: Love Others Well & Empower Them to Do the Same
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