maturityinGod – Refining [Spiritual Growth]

Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds **James 1:2**

Hello Friends!

I would like to take this time to identify the primary purpose of the Refining blog. This blog is designed to gently support your personal relationship with God by strengthening your reliance on scripture and the Holy Spirit. Through each posting, it is fundamentally intended to be a loving and encouraging place where your spiritual growth can be nurtured and your eternal journey can be strengthened.

Life struggles are real and often reveal a deeper need beyond the surface level of our human flesh. They are often opportunities to grow in Christ. It can entail a few key aspects of spiritual maturity – to learn how to fully surrender, to accept a growth voyage of the entire measure of our God-given purpose, to foster a Godly perspective, and to discover unexplainable joy.

Refining arose from a couple of topics: from my own experience with years of unfulfilled joy, direction, and purpose, and from bearing witness to an intense, dismal gorge for half a decade. Although I loved God and considered myself a Christ follower, I was caught off-guard and found myself inadequately prepared when raging storms prevailed continually for five solid years. The struggle unearthed a deeper revelation in my personal story where essential elements were missing: infusion of scripture in my daily walk, Godly living 24/7 for His purpose, and personal identification in the Lord Most High.

Life dispenses mountain top and low valley occurrences for each of us as a chance to cultivate our spiritual development. Refining was birthed as a provision to strengthen your adaptation to the ebb and flow of life and nurture your competence to embrace a lifetime of refinement under God’s authority. God furnished me an effective message and now I want to ensure you are never caught off-guard nor poorly-equipped in the spiritual battle of life.

Let’s walk together and become mighty warriors. Reach out and share your life in this space designed to Glorify the King. Come open your hearts to God’s perspective and share this resource with other Christians in order continue the growth for God. You matter! Your experiences and life circumstances contain valuable information for others to gain knowledge and wisdom. Refining would love to share your writings and thoughts in the days ahead. There are readers out there needing your story to encourage them in their walk as well.

May your heart be filled with God’s goodness and nourishment through Refining in 2020. Come follow Refining on Facebook and see what is happening in our face-to-face sessions as well as additional spiritual support. Invite others to become followers of the Refining blog. Share what you have learned. God has some exciting plans in the future. I look forward to His provisions and callings. We give Him all the praise for the lives impacted as we walk out our faith together.

Happy 2020 my friends.

Have you ever owned your own business and wrestled with calculating profit? The major factor is the expense endured. When costs outweigh revenue…well we all know the rest of the story. It is not exactly a vibrant illustration of success nor a flourishing picture of a booming lemonade stand. (Sorry, Charlie Brown!)

Profit is acknowledged as a gain. In society today, most will jump at a chance to obtain an advantage in life and/or over someone else. We see this in businesses and sports daily. Having leverage over the competition is all the rage in order to be ranked #1. Just look at what the NFL is willing to pay.

We experience this type of opposition in life every second. The enemy makes every attempt to capitalize on your pain, failures, disappointments, -wait for it- as well as your successes, happiness, and prized moments. Of course, the list goes on and on. The adversary will do whatever it takes to achieve favor for selfish profit. I Peter 5:8 warns us of the schemes and advises us to be on guard.

In Galatians 2, Paul calls Peter out on his toxic actions which were rooted in Peter’s own selfish concern of personal profit. Peter refused to dine with the Gentiles because he feared it could jeopardize his religious standing in Jerusalem once the influential Jewish believers arrived. What a perfect example of the enemy weaseling his way into a situation to cause division. However, what the adversary planned actually failed and unity was achieved.

God has a mysterious way of working. It requires us to follow Him blindly, aka faith. Our trust is a firm investment in Him without selfish fear or personal gain concerns. We must surrender and release control over our life regardless of the advantage point we think we might have. Let us not forget-God has already won. Our Lord is ruler over all! (Proverbs 22:2)

I once heard it said, “If we really did profit from our mistakes, I’d be extremely rich by now”. Unfortunately, I think whoever wrote this pun must have been spying on me through the years. My past could be viewed as a Personal Alertness, Spiritual Trial from God. Wake up child and get your act together! I have wasted time by not glorifying the Father in numerous ways and I have grieved the Holy Spirit on many occasions. Father, I am so sorry. As God continues to refine me, I pray that my obedience increases and that my actions reflect a pure heart sold out at all costs for the Lord.

Below are some of my take-a-ways where God capitalized. The opposition tried to hinder my life from being under God’s authority but the enemy lost everything when I tallied the profit.

Thank you, Father for using these things to glorify your name.

Enemy	God’s touch	Refining
Shocking results	Unexplainable healing	I truly believe in miracles.
Sudden departure	Time awareness	I am mindful of each moment.
Breathless life	Lasting love	I appreciate the heavenly spirits and realm.
Worldly passion	Purpose awakened	I was created for so much more.
Lying tongues	Embracing truth	I seek God’s word above all else.
Innocence destroyed	Knowing evil	I know there is spiritual warfare.
Caught off-guard	Be ready	I desire to be steadfast only in the Lord.

Tag: maturityinGod

Refining’s Purpose in 2020

Capitalize