Pure silver...

Our Daily Bread
One of my favorite analogies that I tell friends to describe my spiritual journey is the purification of silver.  The devotional today refers to it.  The silversmith heats up the silver and then pours off the dross or impurities.  He turns up the heat and repeats the same process over and over until the silver is as pure as humanly possible.

God will do the same with us if we let him.  He will purify our hearts, minds and wills if we allow him to turn up the heat and then respond to it in the right way.  We should respond with gratefulness, prayer, joy and confidence in the working of God in our lives.  Praise God!

Please know that I understand how difficult this is!  I am a man who had an eye cut on last week!  Even through that surgery, I was grateful that my doctor knew what he was doing, in prayer that God would be with me, had joy in that one more step to restore my eyesight was complete and confidence in the healing power of God.

Is God turning up the heat on your life?  How are you responding?

Lord, thank you for purifying me.  I ask for your strength for purification! 

Discipleship Two-sday
The two chapters this week talked about Antioch (missionary zeal) and Phillipi (count it all joy).

The Antioch (missionary zeal) chapter talked about the missionary journeys in the Book of Acts that spread the Gospel far and wide.  It was amazing to read again!  Oh, to be that bold in telling the Gospel!

The Phillipi (count it all joy) chapter meant a lot to me.  I mentioned briefly how God lead me to write a devotional a few weeks ago.  He lead me to weave in the topic from this chapter into the devotional before I even read it!  Wow!  I hope it means as much to others as it does to me.  I will post it here on Thursday.

Other Stuff
My left eye seems to be in a holding pattern.  It hasn't gotten better or worse the past 48 hours.  I have a checkup with the doctor tomorrow morning.  I will let you know what he says.  I use all the eye drops he gave me per his instructions.

I hope to finish reading a book today.  I have one or two more I want to read this week.

A friend visited last night.  We had a nice time hanging out and watching a movie.  It was nice spending Valentines Day with a close friend.

Going to get my oil changed and then visit a sick friend.  Reading and rest on the schedule for the remainder of the day.

Hang in there, my friends!  I will be upbeat and steady.  That is what I do...