Fiery Furnace

Have you ever had one of those days? Weeks? Years? Unfortunately, I am afraid if you are breathing you know what I am talking about. A time when God has put you through a period of testing in order to help you grow more like Him. Recently, I have been living one of these maturing times in my own life. To be real honest, there are days that I just do not know how much more I can take, but I am finding comfort and strength in the Old Testament story of the three friends of Daniel: Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. They were thrown into the fiery furance because of their stand for God. Their faith led them to tell the King that if this was their punishment that God could still deliver them if he choose. This statement enraged the King enough so that he set the furnace seven times hotter than ever before. They refused to bow down and were thrown into the furnace completely clothed with hats, coats and socks. Jesus showed up in the furnace with them and when they were taken out, they were victorious. They had been through the fire. The heat was hot and intense but they did survive. God did not get them through by the skin of their teeth. When they came out not only did their clothes not get burned, they did not even smell burnt, not one hair was singed. Glory to God!! When I am exposed to this fire of worldly troubles, and I feel like God is silent, I must choose to believe his promise that He is there with me. I may feel as though when God is through, I will be a mess and have black soot all over me. My hair may be singed to the roots. When I am tired and weary, it is then, I must remember that God promises that when he has accomplished what He needs to, He will run to me, pick me up and say that is enough dear child. He will then polish me off and present me as pure gold with no hint of the fire that has refined me. So if you are stuck in one of those days, weeks, or years, this is His promise to you and me, Cling to it today.

Daniel 3:27 "And the princes, governers, and captains, and the kings counsellors, being gathered together, saw these men, upon whose bodies the fire had no power, nor was an hair of their head singed, neither were their coats changed, nor the smell of fire had passed on them."
I Peter 1:7 "That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honor and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ."

Our Dirty Sheets

My husband and I have tried for a while to help our middle child stop wetting the bed at night, but to no avail. We have tried not giving her liquids after six (which is almost impossible since we both work till six each night!). I have tried waking her up a couple of times a night to have her go, yet somehow she is still wet in the morning and this just leaves me exhausted. We let her wear pullups for a while, but have stopped doing that in hopes that if she feels wet in her bed she will get up and go. This has not worked either, since she is a very sound sleeper she sleeps through it all. Do you know that the chore of changing sheets and washing them everday gets really old, really quick??? Can anyone relate?? Anyone in charge of laundry or dishes surely can. I am really lucky however that she has a set of bunk beds, so she has a double set of all bedding so the top bunk remains unmade while the bottom bunk gets changed everyday. It was one of these mornings, when I called her to the laundry room once again to trade her dirty sheets and comforter for the clean ones that I had just removed from the dryer that God spoke to me. In my Christian walk how many times do I do this to Him? I go to his throne of grace and mercy and ask to trade my dirty sheets for clean ones. Sheets that are only cleanesed through His precious sons' own blood. His response to me is "I love you and here is your clean slate of forgiveness, your new sheets, to start over. Could he possibly be thinking as I do about my daughter? "You are getting old enough to know better. When are you going to quit doing this? Surely you have matured beyond this point, yet here you are again, asking the same things as yesterday." I am truly greatful that he has provided me with the Holy Spirit and the Word of God to help to convict and guide me. The more time I spend in his Word and under his Spirit the more mature I become in my Christian walk. My actions become more and more like him and less like my sinful nature.
Lamentations 3.22-23-"It is of the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not, They are new every morning, great is thy faithfulness."
I Corinthians 3:2- "I have fed you with milk, and not with meat: for hitherto ye were not able to bear it, neither yet now are ye able."
Thank goodness for his daily dose of mercy and grace or I would be sleeping in one stinky bed.?