More Precious Than Gold

"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 honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ:" 

1 Peter 1:7 

My friend and I are reading the bible together, one book at a time, and today we began 1 Peter.  We found something very interesting in chapter 1 verse 7: Our trials are MUCH MORE precious than gold.  

Let that sink in for a minute.

I meditated on some of my current trials right now, and they do not seem like they are worth more than gold.  

What seems to be beneficial for others seem to cause me more detriment.

When it seems like others walk in sunshine, I tend to jump over puddles in the rain.

When I make decisions to better my health, I end up causing more pain; and at this juncture in my life, who would have thought that for the next eighteen and a half months my teeth would be held hostage by metal wires and brackets?

Not me.

But that is all temporal, just like gold.

Our trials of faith produce eternal results causing every single thing that we endure bring praise, honour and glory to the Lord Jesus Christ.

1 Peter 1:6 says, "Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations:"

Peter tells us that we should greatly rejoice in our trials, so why do we tend to be discouraged in the midst of them and why do we do everything humanly possible to avoid them at all costs?  

It's because we are not looking at what they produce, we are looking at the inconvenience, the pain, the heartache. We are focusing on the here and now instead of focusing on God's purpose for them.

Charles Spurgeon once said, "Indeed, it is the honor of faith to be tried. Shall any man say, 'I have faith, but I have never had to believe under difficulties?' Who knows whether thou hast any faith? Shall a man say, 'I have great faith in God, but I have never had to use it in anything more than the ordinary affairs of life, where I could probably have done without it as well as with it?' Dost thou think that such a faith as this will bring any great glory to God, or bring to thee any great reward? If so, thou are mightily mistaken."

It's easy to have faith when everything is going great in our little corner of the world...

     but when things get tough...

         God wants to see what our faith is really made of...

            But that's just me!

"The trials of our faith are more precious than gold. Gold is temporal but the trying of our faith brings about eternal results."  Kris Poling.

Rejoice in the Lord

Ron Hamilton 2002

Verse 1-God never moves without purpose or plan,

When trying His servant and molding a man.

Give thanks to the Lord though your testing seems long,

In darkness He giveth a song.

Verse 2-I could not see through the shadows ahead,

So I looked at the cross of my Saviour instead.

I bowed to the will of the Master that day,

Then peace came and tears fled away.

Verse 3- Now I can see testing comes from above,

God strengthens His children and purges in love.

My Father knows best, and I trust in His care,

Through purging more fruit I will bear.

Chorus: O, Rejoice in the Lord,

He makes no mistake,

He knoweth the end of each path that I take, 

For when I am tried,

And purified,

I shall come forth as gold!