the silversmith

My mother-in-law shared this story with me, and it hit me hard...in a good way.

There was a group of ladies doing a Bible study on Malachi, concentrating on the passage about the refiner's fire. "For he will be like a refiner's fire or a launderer's soap. He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver; he will purify the Levites and refine them like gold and silver." Malachi 3:2-3.

One of the ladies wanted to gain more insight about the passage, particularly the role of a refiner, so she went to a silversmith. As she watched him place the silver in the fire, the lady asked him, "So, once you put the silver in the fire, can you just leave it there for a while and come back later."

"Oh no," said the silversmith, "I never leave the silver once I put it in the fire. I stay right by it until it's finished."

"Ok. Well, when do you know the silver is finished? When do you know when it's time to take it out of the fire?" asked the woman.

"Oh that's easy," said the silversmith. "I know it's refined when I can see my image in it."