Good Morning Everyone,
Our theme for this month: “The fear of not having enough”
Our Bible verse for today: “He will be like a refiner and purifier of silver; He will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver. Then they will present offerings to the Lord in righteousness.” Malachi 3:3 (HCSB)
Our thought for today: “Changes require separation and purification.”
Author Jack Alexander writes, “To turn most raw materials, including crude oil, plants, and metals, into the products we use in our daily lives, scientists and manufacturers put them through an intense two-step process of separation and purification. This process actually changes the composition of the original material, turning it into something entirely different, to be used in ways the original material could not be.” He is referring to the process of refining, whereby a raw material is melted down, the impurities separated out, and the purified substance is then reformed into something new and useful.
God uses a similar process of separation and purification in our lives. It’s a process of refining which separates out of our life the patterns of thinking, the wrong understandings, and the unacceptable behaviors that need to be removed. This is not unlike the process of refining used to remove impurities from gold or silver. Then, once the impurities have been removed, the purified object is shaped into something new, something different than it was before, something beautiful and precious, something of much greater value and usefulness than it was before.
To overcome the fear of not having enough (enough money, ability, etc) we have learned that we must consecrate all that we have and all that we are to God to be used as He wishes. We have also learned that once we do that we often come to a pivot point, a moment that changes our direction or gives us new understanding and insight, and which changes everything for us. Then we learned that although the pivot point will likely result in some immediate changes, the real change usually comes progressively, over a long period of time.
Today we find that the period of progressive transformation will involve separating out of our lives those things which have been holding us back from becoming the people God wants us to be. It’s a process which occurs over a long period of time during which we get rid of old thoughts and behaviors and replace them with new thoughts and behaviors. This is what the refining process accomplishes in us.
The refining process can be uncomfortable, maybe even painful. But it is absolutely necessary in order to bring about the changes which must occur. I want to encourage you to ask God to help you see the thought patterns and behaviors in your life which need to be separated out. Then ask Him to show you the new thoughts and new behaviors that need to be incorporated into your life in order to bring you into this new way of thinking and acting.
God Bless,
Pastor Jim
Oak Hill Baptist Church 