Good morning. Today's inspiration is a continuation of what we talked about yesterday. This will come from chapters 4 and five of first Peter. Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you, which comes upon you for your testing, as though some strange thing were happening to you. Whoa! Fiery ordeal? I thought yesterday He was just talking about some little something that a person asked us about. What's with this fiery ordeal? It's not much of a testing if it's just baby powder. Of course He knows what's in us; but we don't. We don't know if we will bend like the palm tree or break like the pine. Then it says: but to the degree that you share the sufferings of Christ, keep on rejoicing. Rejoicing – seriously? I don't like to suffer. It hurts either physically or emotionally. In Acts chapter 5 the apostles had been flogged, and they went on their way rejoicing that they had been considered worthy to suffer shame for His name. Back to first Peter: if you are reviled for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you. In today's world if you're not being put down for being a Christian, you're probably not living a very open Christian life. We need to come out of the closet. Remember though it's being ready to make a defense to those that ask us. We don't go looking for trouble like some Christians do. Verse 19 says let those who suffer according to the will of God entrust their souls to a faithful Creator in doing what is right. Just the doing of what is right will bring you enough trouble today. And then in verse 10 of Chapter 5: after you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ, will Himself perfect, confirm, strengthen and establish you. Good, it's for just a little while. Of course sometimes His little while and my little while are two completely different things. When we come through the fire we are strengthened like a metal weapon in a forge. The purpose is not to crush us but to strengthen us. I pray that neither one of us has to go through a fiery ordeal; but if we do, I pray that we come through perfect, confirmed, strengthened, and established.

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