Have you ever felt as though you were being refined by fire? Or in a cauldron where the pressure intensifies?

I have and let me tell you, it isn’t fun. I would’ve rather had pulled teeth!

Today I am speaking to the Christian woman who feels like she can’t catch a break. Confusion and chaos reign. You wonder why you can’t get clarity, and you feel stuck and unable to decide. Or when you do make one, you vacillate and flip-flop.

Does that ring true for you, my Friend? Oh, I feel your frustration when you pray and so desperately want to move forward but you’re neutral and unable to move.

Stay tuned and I’ll share a story of how gold is refined by fire. I think you’ll quickly see the application to our lives and discover a fresh new perspective.

How Gold is Refined

This story of how gold is refined was a game changer for me. The mindset shift enabled me to view my lack of clarity and confusion in a new way. Here goes.

Gold is refined by fire. It is placed in a large cauldron with intense heat to melt it to liquid. As it melts, the impurities rise to the top and are siphoned off. More heat is applied with greater intensity and impurities again rise to the surface to be removed. This process continues with more intensity until all impurities are removed. When the refiner investigates the pot of gold and sees his reflection, he knows it is pure and ready for its intended purpose.

Are you getting an inkling of the application of this process to our lives?

Do you desire to do remarkable things? Do you want to know God’s purpose for your life but have difficulty discerning exactly what that means for you?

My Call

Well, you aren’t alone. December 24, 2017, I sensed God’s call to me. What I heard in my spirit was “I want you to tell your story.” A story of abandonment, rejection, estrangement, poor decisions, hardship, adversity but also transformation, hope, forgiveness, and a future.

In fact, my life verse is Jeremiah 29:11 that says, “For I know the plans I have for you” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”

For a long time, I contemplated this verse. If God did indeed have plans for me, what were they? Why didn’t I know what they are? Wouldn’t he want to share that with me? And then I heard that call but still struggled to know what it meant.

Seven years I sought what God intended when I heard that call. And I almost gave up several times. I thought I must’ve heard a voice in my head, which wasn’t God. Who would want to hear my story? Moreover, could it do anything for anyone else?

Estrangement, Refinement and Breakthrough

I didn’t realize at the time was that I was in that cauldron. The heat was pressure that I was feeling all around me. Lack of clarity. Confusion. Doubt as I wondered if it was even God speaking to me. Additionally, I even faced an identity crisis as I wondered why God would want to use me and my sordid story.

Initially, I drafted my story. And then I shared it with a few people. One was a Family Counselor Pastor at Church. He encouraged me to write out a 20-minute speech telling my story with three or four major points. That became my focus.

Refocusing

A glaring issue that came to me was that I used my story to justify some of my actions and called out others with whom I was estranged. It seemed like an open letter to those who had hurt me, and I knew that wasn’t what God desired.

As I prayed and continued to edit, the story came together better. It centered on me as a child, growing up, adulthood and the circumstances that surrounded me. It was centered around decisions I made along with the resulting consequences.

And the key figure in the story is Jesus and how he intervened and helped me in the lowest point of life. That is the story he wanted me to tell. I sensed him saying to me that others also have guilt, shame, and estrangement. They also hurt. And I can tell them how God helped me and could help them too.

Coaching To Help Those in Estranged Relationships

Armed with a sense of where God was calling me, I began to explore how I might help others who struggled similarly. Well, that cauldron wasn’t gone. I continued to have doubts and fears. As the pressure intensified God was working in my heart to let go of those things and learn to trust him.

I don’t know about you, but I like to be in control. It’s hard for me to let go of something and trust. Is that true of you too?

A series of events occurred in which I had zero control and God showed up. He showed me that I needed to be refined by fire. No one likes to be under pressure but that’s the very tool God uses to mature our faith us so that we can move closer to the goal.

I enrolled in a 22-week coaching certification program. I was trusting God and felt as though I was moving forward.

Are you sensing a calling in your life? Are you struggling with fears and doubt? I want to encourage you. That is normal. Rarely does God give us all the light we need at once.

I’m reminded of a miner’s light. As he is deep within the dark mine, he wears a hat with a light attached. He only has a small bit of light. Enough to keep moving forward a little at a time. As he moves, more light is given. It’s the same with us. What light has he given you? Are you paralyzed in fear or inching forward?

I completed the certification and am now a CTA Certified Life Coach. So now what? What was next?

God’s Timing

I don’t know about you, but I’m a “do it now” person. I don’t like waiting. At a grocery store, a traffic light or anywhere. God was intensifying the heat in the cauldron as he was teaching me to wait on him. His timing is perfect as he sees everything, and I only see a portion. So, he’s teaching me to trust him and now to wait too?

I hope it doesn’t take you as long to learn this lesson as it did me. It’s painful. I got an idea and ran with it. After all, it was a clever idea. And after I’m weary from running with no results, I realize that I failed to wait for his timing again! And I’ll continue to face this pressure until I get it.

And I’m learning another lesson as I’m in the cauldron. God is patient and long-suffering. He’ll take as long with me as it takes to learn what he’s trying to teach me. Couldn’t we just move on from this lesson to another one?

After receiving the coaching certification, I was back to identifying my audience. To whom would I tell my story? Because I ran ahead of his timing a few times, it took time, energy and money that wasn’t productive. I was learning to wait on God’s timing because I discovered that it truly is perfect.

God began to define my audience. I listened to my heart and the passion he had placed there. I was ready to move forward – this time in his timing and with his guidance.

Forged Through Fire

The Apostle Paul described his own experience of being refined by fire. Hunger, cold, sleepless nights, suffering and imprisonment. Why would Paul, of elite status among his people, subject himself to this? For the same reason you and I do.

We desire to do something great for the Lord. We want him to use us to help others. We want to know if we have a purpose and that we are fulfilling that role. God called Paul, just as he calls me and you. His authority and ours don’t come from our own efforts, skills, or talents.

The authority God gives us is forged through fire, through endurance and perseverance. What I’ve learned in that cauldron and the pressures and heat that followed is that when God calls anyone to a position of influence, they must pass through a refining process. It’s required to have the capacity to manage the responsibility that comes with the calling.

Are you in the cauldron?

You were created for and with a purpose. It’s much easier if you surrender to the process and stop fighting it. You can trust God to get you through it. Don’t give up.

Refined by Fire to Step into Your Calling

If I author a book, it will be entitled Rising on the Wings of Adversity.

Isaiah 40:31 says, “But those who wait on the Lord will renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.

The refiner has been working in you. Once you endure the process by learning and growing, God will help you walk with great freedom and purpose. You’ll be able to soar like an eagle high up in the air above the fray. You’ll have clarity and confidence in your calling.

The refiner’s fire has produced trials and tests that have strengthened your wings and rise into the calling He has given.

Oh, I still get impatient and find it hard to wait for God at times. But I’ve learned to trust him and know that he not only calls but equips us. When I’m tempted to rush ahead, I remember the outcomes previously and I resolve to wait until he gives me clear direction.

And sometimes, he wants us to step out in faith. Don’t be afraid to make the wrong decision. If you’re praying and seeking him according to his will and scripture, then he may be leading you to take a step in faith. And when I’ve done those doors open. Just don’t give up. Keep trusting.

Don’t Quit

Have you ever taken off on a difficult hike? Hanging Lake in Glenwood Springs comes to mind for me. It was short at just over a mile, so how difficult could it be? With an elevation gain of 1,000 feet and starting at altitude already, it was daunting.

At times, the climb seemed almost vertical. And breathing was difficult, causing me to stop and rest often. As I looked around, the vista was spectacular. Did I really need to go to the top to see a lake? I continued the negative self-talk and almost turned around a few times. Something kept me moving forward.

People coming down spoke of the sheer beauty of this lake at the top. Cool and refreshing sounded great to me. Nearing the top, the incline was so steep a railing had been installed to assist. And what I discovered next took my breath away.

Years ago, the ground had fallen creating a lake filled with clear water. Above where the ground had been a waterfall as long as the lake itself. It was cascading over as though it was hanging. The heat of the sunshine gave way to the cool breeze and mist coming from the falls.

In an instant, I forgot the difficulty of the climb. And the pressures, trial, and testing. Because I endured and persevered, I reached the top and experienced the amazing site I would have missed otherwise.

God has you on a path. You may be experiencing trials and tribulations now, but don’t quit. Surrender to the process and let yourself be refined by his fire. It’s necessary and you’ll experience immense joy when he leads you into your purpose. And when you look back to where you’ve been and how far you’ve come, you’ll realize that he can be trusted.

Are you ready to surrender and allow the pressures to refine you? Don’t look back. Keep looking up and trusting God to mold you into His plan and purpose.

Encouragement that Refinement isn’t a One and Done

Let me finish by giving you some additional encouragement. When you’re refined by fire, it isn’t a one and done. Refinement is a lifelong process as we grow in our faith. Sometimes the intensity is too much to bear. That’s when the greatest growth opportunity exists.

And at other times, the pressure may seem light and momentary. But this side of heaven, we’re never refined 100%. And that’s great news. You and I don’t have to be perfect as we move forward in our passion and purpose.

God led me to my passion and that’s encouraging others like you in their path to move forward. Whether it’s guilt or shame you experience or estranged relationships, life is hard. God knows your heart. His promise is to be with you and never leave. That’s a promise you can count on.

I’ve experienced so much doubt and fear and anxiety as the refinement has come and gone. And my faith is stronger. So is my trust that God will lead and guide me even when I can’t see the finish line.

Keep going, my friend. Embrace the cauldron and let God refine you. He has great plans for your life. Things that are unique to you. Don’t give up!

And I would love to hear about your story and you are being refined by fire. If you’re comfortable please share your refinement process with me. It will be confidential, and I love a happy story of God working in others’ lives.

Help me build my audience and passion to help others. By helping me, you’re helping others too. Please share this episode with someone or let them know about my podcast so they can follow and grow too.

And lastly, if you’re benefitting from this podcast, please leave a review for me. That also helps build my audience and reach those that need to hear.

Until next time, keep trusting and persevering!

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