Sterling Tuesday's Kitchen Inspirations

No, I do not have a sterling silver teapot in my kitchen.  However, I came across The Lady in the Stone House by Tami when I was reading and leaving comments on sweet Eloise's blog.  Please lift Eloise's precious daughter, Vivian, in prayer.  She is extremely ill and in the PICU in their local hospital.

I do not know Tami.  However, what she wrote spoke volumes to me.  I hope you will take to heart this story.  Eloise is in the fire. And as I write this, I have many other friends who are in the fire. As Tami wrote, "Everyone has something, sometime when they have been in the fire. It's how you come out of the fire that matters."


Malachi 3:3 says: "He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver"


This verse puzzled some women in a Bible study and they wondered what this statement meant about the character and nature of God.

One of the women offered to find out the process of refining silver and get back to the group at their next Bible study.

That week, the woman called a silversmith and made an appointment to watch him at work. She didn't mention anything about the reason for her interest beyond her curiosity about the process of refining silver.

As she watched the silversmith, he held a piece of silver over the fire and let it heat up. He explained that in refining silver, one needed to hold the silver in the middle of the fire where the flames were the hottest as to burn away all the impurities.

The woman thought about God holding us in such a hot spot; then she thought again about the verse that says: "He sits as a refiner and purifier of silver." She asked the silversmith if it was true that he had to sit there in front of the fire the whole time the silver was being refined.

The man answered yes, he not only had to sit there holding the silver, but he had to keep his eyes on the silver the entire time it was in the fire. If the silver was left a moment too long in the flames, it would be destroyed.

The woman was silent for a moment. Then she asked the silversmith, "How do you know when the silver is fully refined?"

He smiled at her and answered, "Oh, that's easy - when I see my image in it."

If today you are feeling the heat of the fire, remember that God has his eye on you and will keep watching you until He sees His image in you.