Being Refined

Thank you all for your prayers! I feel you all lifting me out of this. I am so grateful to have you all in my life!

God has really been speaking to me out of Isaiah..it is every where! It has been so good to find comfort in His word during this season. I read this devotion today...it has been one of many that have spoken directly to my situation this past week.

The verse was, Isaiah 48:10... "I have refined you, but not as silver is refined. Rather I have refined you in the furnace of suffering."

This is the poem that accompanied the verse:

Pain's furnace within me quivers,
God's breath upon the flame does blow;
And all my heart in anguish shivers
And trembles at the fiery glow;
And yet I whisper, "As God will!"
And in the hottest fire hold still.

He comes and lays my heart, all heated,
On the hard anvil, minded so
Into His own fair shape to beat it
With His great hammer, blow on blow,
And yet I whisper, "As God will!"
And at His heaviest blow hold still.

He takes my softened heart and beats it;
The sparks fly off at every blow;
He turns it o'er and o'er and heats it,
And lets is cool and makes it glow;
And yet I whisper, "As God will!"
And in His mighty hand hold still.

Why should I complain? For the sorrow
Then only linger-lived would be;
The end may come, and will tomorrow,
When God has done His work in me;
And yet I whisper, "As God will!"
And trusting to the end, hold still.
-Julius Sturm

If that doesn't describe what I am going through I don't think any words would be able to. And so I have been whispering, "As God will!" And I will trust Him to the very end.

Happy Anniversary, or Whatever

I just realized that our little blog here has surpassed the 500 hit mark! I don't know why I got excited about that but I did. There have been exactly 547 hits since I checked last. Half of them are probably from me in the last few days becasue I have been blogging so much and doing a little visual remodeling. Oh by the way, do you like the changes?

Any way...I am thrilled that this blog has been around for 12 months now. I can't remember life before blogging. It may have included myspace (shhh don't tell anyone). But I think I am a much cooler person now that I have a blog. Please, try not to laugh out loud.

I think it is pretty cool. You may or may not have realized that this blog has not only provided a way for me to talk about things that I find interesting but it has also helped me keep in touch with family and friends all over the world. It's like we are all part of one big network. I still love looking at my cluster map (although not as obsessively as before) for that very reason...we are all connected. We are all part of the Body of Christ.

I have really met some interesting people though this blog. I hope that more continue to come and that maybe somehow they will see something different in me. Something that looks like Jesus. So Happy Anniversary or Whatever you call it. I am so glad you stopped by.