🔥 What the Fire Burns Away

Fire doesn’t just destroy - it refines. Gold isn’t proven in comfort, it’s proven in the flames.

In 1 Peter 1:7, Scripture says:
“Your faith-more precious than gold… though tested by fire-may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.”

That picture is powerful. Gold doesn’t lose its value in the fire - it loses its impurities. The heat doesn’t take away what’s real, it takes away what doesn’t belong. And that’s exactly what God does in our lives.

My Fire

I know this isn’t just theory - I’ve lived it.

There was a season where I thought the fire was going to kill me. I was restless, exhausted, haunted by fears that felt bigger than me. I begged God to take it away. But He didn’t remove the fire - He stood with me in it.

Looking back, I can see what He was doing. He was burning away pride. Burning away isolation. Burning away the masks I wore to look strong when inside I was breaking.

What survived wasn’t my strength or my plans. What survived was faith - a desperate, stripped-down faith that said: “Jesus, You’re all I’ve got.” And that kind of faith? That’s gold.

Another in the Fire

It reminds me of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in Daniel 3. They refused to bow, and they were thrown into a furnace so hot it killed the guards.

But when the king looked inside, he saw four men - because God Himself was in the fire with them. And when they came out, not a hair on their heads was singed. The only thing the flames touched were the ropes that had bound them.

That’s what the refining fire does. It doesn’t destroy you - it destroys your chains.

Your Fire

So let me turn this around: what fire are you standing in right now?

The fire of grief?
The fire of rejection?
The fire of temptation that won’t let go?
Or just the fire of life feeling like it’s falling apart?

If you’ve been asking God, “Why me? Why this?” - maybe the better question is:
“God, what are You burning away in me through this fire?”

Because fear can’t survive the fire. Shame can’t survive the fire. Lies and false identities can’t survive the fire. Those things turn to ash.

But the faith God planted in you? That’s eternal.

When the Smoke Clears

Here’s the promise: when the smoke clears, you won’t be the same person who walked into the flames.

Something will be different. Fear will be gone. Shame will be gone. Chains will be gone. And what will remain is faith. Stronger. Purer. Eternal.

So don’t see your trial as punishment. See it as proof. Proof that your faith is real. Proof that God is still working. Proof that He’s preparing you for what’s next.

Because when the fire is finished, you’ll shine with a faith more precious than gold.