A year ago, yesterday, their newborn, Audrey Caroline went to be with Jesus. Angie's blog is a story of this precious child and the journey that their family has been on. I, personally, have been very blessed by her authentic, honest, beautiful posts. She loves her Savior and is experiencing joy in the mist of the most difficult trial possible.
This morning I read the post that she wrote yesterday, the one year birthday of their daughter who is with Jesus. I found myself sobbing as I read her candid post.
I have been working on a talk that I am to give in less than a month at our Women's Conference. It is entited "Weathering the storms of life's disappointments, and experiencing joy in the mist of them". I know, it's a long title. I am still trying to work on it. I have never experienced the kind of tragic disappointment that the Smiths have, but there have been many disappointments in my life. Whether big or small these times can suck the joy right out of us. It's normal to wonder where God is in the situation and how He could allow such tradegy. But to stay at this point and turn our back on God will only bring depression and despair. We may never understand the why's, but we can have peace and abundant joy in the truth that God is Good and Sovereign. He desires us to trust Him wholelly and have faith that He is in control.
One of the examples I will be using in my talk is how a refiner of silver works with this precious metal. This metal has to go through the fire, enduring just the right amount of tempurature and time so that it softens and then melts. The impurities rise to the surface and are skimmed off. Then bits of coal are added to the containor that the liquid is in. This charcoal enhances the sheen of the silver. He continue to adds more fuel, tend to the fire and skims the impurities off. The refiner never leaves it side. He lets the fire cool, sets the liquid metal aside and the process is repeated again, but now the fire is hotter. Again, new impurities are released and skimmed off and it is at this time that when the refiner looks into the liquid he sees his reflection. It isn't totally clear yet, but more distinct than before. He continues to work hard with this metal and finally he sees what he has patiently worked for, a clear image of himself. This time, distinct and sharp. His work is done, the impurities are gone and his silver is refined. The result is a beautiful and very valuable metal.
Isn't this a beautiful example of you and I. God is the Refiner and we are His silver. God takes us His beautiful creation and makes us even more beautiful through His refining work of taking away the impurities and making us pure. His desire is to see His reflection in the silver- you and me. Honestly it is through life's hardships that we are refined. When life goes the way I want it too I plug along happy and carefree, but when disapointment sets in: a job loss, sickness, loss of a child, broken relationship, we are vulnerable and in prime condition for God to do his refining work in our lives.
Here is a poem called "Refiner's Fire", this is uses the metal gold instead of silver, but the concept remains the same.
The Refiner's Fire
He sat by the fire of seven-fold heat,
As He watched by the precious ore.
And closer He bent with a searching gaze
As He heated it more and more.
He knew He had ore that could stand the test
And He wanted the finest gold,
To mold as a crown for the King to wear,
Set with gems of price untold.
So He laid our gold in the burning fire,
Though we fain would have said Him, "Nay."
And He watched the dross that we had not seen,
As it melted and passed away.
And the gold grew brighter, and yet more bright
And our eyes were so dim with tears,
As we saw the fire, not the Master's hand,
And questioned with anxious fear.
Yet our gold shone out with a richer glow,
As it mirrored a Form above
That bent o'er the fire, though unseen by us
With a look of infinite love.
Can we think that it pleases His loving heart
To cause a moment of pain?
Ah, no, but He saw through the present cross
The bliss of eternal gain.
So He waited there with a watchful eye,
With a love that is strong and sure,
And His gold did not suffer a bit more heat
Than was needed to make it pure!
Author Unknown
Romans 5:3-5 " We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.
1Peter 4:12-14 "Dear friends, don’t be surprised at the fiery trials you are going through, as if something strange were happening to you. Instead, be very glad—for these trials make you partners with Christ in his suffering, so that you will have the wonderful joy of seeing his glory when it is revealed to all the world.
James 1:2-4- "Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.
Back to the blog that has provoked all these thoughts and has been an encouragement to me. I don't personally know Angie and Todd Smith, but I can tell you that I know from reading her posts that they have allowed the Refiner to do a work in their lives through the tradgedy of their precous daughter. Though the pain is still great, they are trusting in God and are growing closer to Him through this tragic disappointment. Though it has been bitterly hard they have recognized and welcomed His plan and have embraced this disappointment with faith; knowing that they will have the joy of seeing His glory when it is revealed.
Let me encourage you to follow the link to their blog and read their story. It will bless your life like it has mine. I put a song on my playlist called Refiner's Fire by Steve Green. Just click play! You can view the lyrics here.
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