You may not know it, but you have been CHOSEN by God! You have been singled out, pre-selected and placed in the furnace of affliction. The heat feels unbearable, but you will soon come out fired up and well-prepared to fulfill your divine destination.

“Behold, I have refined thee, but not with silver; I have chosen thee in the furnace of affliction.” (Isaiah 48:10 KJV).

Fired Up!

If, like Peter in Luke 22, you are being sifted like wheat, and are wondering when it’s going to end, know this. It is because you have been chosen! What you are going through may well be designed by the devil, but it was authorized by God. The heat is intense now, and it feels destructive, but it is a refining fire.

You are in the furnace because you are destined for victory. God has something greater in store for you than you are able to fathom!  We stand in amazement at the accomplishments of iconic name-brand preachers and imagine our own impact as miniscule in comparison. We may marvel at the accumulation of wealth by billionaire entrepreneurs like Jeff Bezos or Elon Musk. Yet the same biblical authority, Paul, who wrote, “I can do all things through Christ…,” also told YOU that YOU have in YOU a power that is greater than any obstacle you face.  It is greater than the towering mountain that is blocking you from reaching or even seeing your goal.

We love quoting Philippians 4:13, “I can do ALL things through Christ who strengthens me” and Mark 9:23, “All things are possible to him that believes.” Both Scriptures use the phrase, “all things.”  “I can do all things” and “all things are possible.”  We quote it! We love it! We rejoice over it!  We shout about it!

But do we genuinely believe it?  Of course, we believe we can do SOME things.  But in our sub-conscious minds, we may be adding the letters “sm” before the –all.  We are saying ALL but sub-consciously thinking, “I can do small things through Christ.” We are afraid to take a risk and go after the greater. Yet we have the greater within us! “Greater is he that is in you than he that is in the world” (1 John 4:4).

So why should you be defeated by fear? It has been said that F-E-A-R has two meanings: ‘Forget everything and run’ or ‘Face everything and rise.’ I don’t know who this is for other than me. But last night as I was lying face down in my prayer room asking God to give me a message that would challenge and bless somebody, this is what He deposited in my spirit. So, rise up, fired up, and face it! You can do it!

Remember: With Christ, we can accomplish anything. But before we can reach our full potential, we must be tested, tried, refined, and purified. The road to greatness leads through the furnace of affliction.

Focus Quote: “But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you.”  

 –1 Peter 5:10 KJV

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Coming Soon! Faith For Fiery Trials Vol. 2, Men’s Ed. Co-authored by A. Sumner!