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PAMOJA MINISTRY — REFINED FOR A PURPOSE CONVERSATION XVI — REFINED FOR A PURPOSE · PAMOJA PODCAST | PAMOJA MINISTRY, A LIFE OF CHRIST INTERNATIONAL MINISTRIES

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Welcome back to Pamoja Ministry. Today, we have
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reached the final conversation of refined for
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a purpose and before we go anywhere. I want you
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to remember where we have been. We have talked
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about the fire. We have talked about character,
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integrity, compromise, the crack before the collapse,
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correction, failure, mercy, preparation. the
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weight of what we prayed for. And in our last
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conversation, don't waste the fire, we ask one
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final question before moving forward. What must
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not follow me into the next season? We said,
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take the lesson, leave the bitterness, take the
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wisdom, leave the shame, take the discernment,
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leave the paranoia, take the humility, leave
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the humiliation, take the correction. Leave the
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condemnation take the testimony and leave behind
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what the fire was meant to remove but now We
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have reached the other side of that question
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Because after asking what the fire was meant
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to remove Perhaps we should ask what was the
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fire producing? What if the season you thought
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was only breaking you was also building something?
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What if the season you thought was only delaying
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you was developing you? What if the season you
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thought was only exposing your weakness was teaching
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you where your strength actually comes from?
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What if God was doing something in you while
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you were asking him to do something around you?
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Maybe now we are ready to understand the name
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of this entire journey You are not simply going
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through the fire. You are being refined for a
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purpose. Maybe you couldn't see it while you
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were in it. There is something about difficult
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seasons. When you are inside them, your vision
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becomes limited. You see today's pain, today's
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pressure, today's unanswered question, today's
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disappointment, today's battle. You pray, God,
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get me out. God, change this. God, open the door.
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God, remove this pressure. God, defend me. God,
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restore me. And those prayers are understandable.
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But sometimes, providence becomes clearer, looking
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backward than living forward. Joseph could not
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see Egypt from the pit. David could not see the
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throne from the cave. Moses could not see the
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Red Sea opening while tending sheep in Midian.
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Peter could not see Pentecost while crying after
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denying Jesus. Paul could not see his future
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ministry while blinded on the road to Damascus.
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Sometimes you understand what God was producing.
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Later, James says, consider it pure joy, my brothers
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and sisters, whenever you face trials of many
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kinds. Why? Not because pain is enjoyable. Not
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because injustice is good. Not because betrayal
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is good. Not because loss is good. James continues,
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because you know that the testing of your faith
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produces perseverance. There is the word produces.
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The trial is doing something. The testing is
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producing something. The pressure is revealing
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something. The process is developing something.
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and sometimes you cannot see what is being produced
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until later. The fire was not the purpose. This
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distinction matters. We should never become so
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fascinated with suffering that we begin treating
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pain itself as holy. Pain is not automatically
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purpose. Suffering is not automatically spiritual
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maturity. Some suffering comes from living in
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a broken world. Some comes from other people's
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decisions. Some comes from our own decisions.
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Some comes through persecution. Some circumstances
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remain mysterious. And scripture does not require
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us to call evil good. Romans 8 28 does not say
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everything that happens is good. It tells us
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that God works in all things for the good of
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those who love him and are called according to
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his purpose. That means the fire does not have
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to be good for God to bring good through it.
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The betrayal was not necessarily good. The disappointment
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was not necessarily good. The failure was not
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good. The injustice was not good. The loss was
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painful. But God is not limited by what happened.
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He can take what should have destroyed you and
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weave it into something that develops you. The
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fire was not the purpose. Refinement was. Peter
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says your faith can come through the fire like
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gold. 1 Peter 1 says that trials come so that
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the proven genuineness of your faith, of greater
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worth than gold, which perishes even though refined
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by fire, may result in praise, glory, and honor
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when Jesus Christ is revealed. Peter compares
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tested faith to gold. Gold enters the fire containing
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impurities. The heat reveals what doesn't belong.
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The refiner removes it. And what remains becomes
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purer. Think about our entire season. Maybe the
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fire revealed something in you. Anger, pride,
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fear, insecurity, the need for approval, weak
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boundaries, undisciplined words, unforgiveness,
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poor stewardship. self -confidence without dependence
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upon God. Maybe you didn't know it was there.
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Maybe you knew but underestimated it. Maybe you
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defended it. Maybe you called it personality.
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Maybe you blamed everybody else. Then pressure
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came and suddenly there it was. But what if God
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allowed you to see it because he wanted to deal
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with it? Maybe exposure wasn't always destruction.
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Maybe exposure was an invitation to refinement.
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The fire revealed you to you. There are things
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God already knows about us that we have not yet
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discovered about ourselves. Peter believed he
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was ready to die with Jesus. Jesus knew Peter
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was about to deny him. Peter's confidence was
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sincere, but it wasn't complete self -knowledge.
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Then pressure came. and Peter discovered Peter.
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Have you ever experienced that? You thought you
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were patient until you had to wait. You thought
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you had forgiven until you saw the person again.
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You thought you were humble until somebody corrected
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you. You thought money didn't matter until you
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lost some. You thought you trusted God until
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the answer didn't come. You thought you had self
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-control. Until temptation came at the right
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moment. You thought you didn't need approval.
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Until people stopped applauding. The fire didn't
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necessarily create everything it exposed. Sometimes
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the fire revealed what was already there. And
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that revelation can be painful. But you cannot
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surrender what you refuse to see. You cannot
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strengthen a boundary. you refuse to admit is
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weak. You cannot repent of something you continue
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defending. You cannot ask God to transform a
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version of yourself you keep pretending doesn't
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exist. Sometimes the beginning of transformation
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is the moment you finally say, God, I see it
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now. But God didn't show you the impurity to
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throw away the gold. This may be one of the most
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important things we have learned. When God reveals
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something in you, don't immediately conclude,
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I'm finished. The refiner doesn't throw away
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gold because he discovers impurities. The impurities
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are why refining exists. David failed terribly.
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God corrected him. Peter failed publicly. Jesus
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restored him. Jacob carried deception in his
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history. God wrestled with him and changed him.
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Moses had weaknesses. God dealt with him. Paul
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had a past that could have buried him in shame.
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Yet he said, by the grace of God, I am what I
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am. Grace does not tell you impurity doesn't
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matter. Grace says, bring it to God. Let him
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deal with it. Correction is not always rejection.
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Conviction is not condemnation. Failure does
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not automatically cancel purpose. And the crack
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does not necessarily mean the structure is worthless.
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Sometimes God shows you the crack because he
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intends to preserve the structure. Look at who
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you are becoming. This is where I want us to
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slow down. Because maybe you have spent this
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entire season looking at what you lost. But have
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you looked at what you gained? Not materially,
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internally. Maybe you pray differently now. Maybe
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you listen more carefully. Maybe you are slower
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to react. Maybe you recognize certain temptations
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sooner. Maybe you understand your boundaries
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better. Maybe you don't need everybody's approval
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anymore. Maybe you apologize faster. Maybe you
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know when to remain silent. Maybe you are more
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careful with your words. Maybe you have become
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more compassionate toward people who fail. Maybe
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you understand grace differently. Maybe you have
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learned that being strong does not mean pretending
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you never get tired. Maybe you ask for help sooner.
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Maybe you recognize pride faster. Maybe you know
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that your gift cannot replace your character.
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Maybe you understand that integrity must be protected.
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Maybe you have learned to pray before responding.
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Maybe you have learned that not every battle
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requires your participation. Maybe your circumstances
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have not completely changed. But you have. And
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perhaps that is one of the miracles you almost
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missed. You were waiting for God to change everything
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around you, and somewhere along the way, God
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began changing something within you. You asked
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God to change the season, but God was also changing
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you. This is the revelation. Sometimes we enter
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prayer focused on circumstances. Change my job.
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Change my finances. Change my marriage. Change
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this person. change the situation, change the
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environment, change the outcome. But then God
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begins asking, what about your reaction? What
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about your pride? What about your discipline?
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What about your words? What about your boundaries?
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What about your unforgiveness? What about your
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stewardship? What about your dependence upon
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me? And suddenly, The prayer changes. Instead
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of only, God, change this. It becomes, God, change
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me while I walk through this. That is a different
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level of prayer. Because now the fire is no longer
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simply something you are trying to escape. It
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becomes something you refuse to waste. God doesn't
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waste the fire. This has become one of the central
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declarations of our journey. God doesn't waste
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the fire. Again, that does not mean God authored
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every painful thing that happened. It means nothing
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is beyond his ability to redeem, teach through,
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transform through, or incorporate into his purposes.
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Joseph said to his brothers in Genesis 50 20,
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you intended to harm me, but God intended it
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for good. The intentions were different. Their
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intention was harm. God's purpose was preservation.
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Joseph did not call their evil good. He recognized
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that their evil did not have final authority
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over his story. What they intended was not what
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ultimately defined the outcome. And perhaps there
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are things in your story that you still cannot
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explain. Don't force an explanation. where God
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has not given one. But you can still believe
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what happened does not have greater authority
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than God. The fire does not get to decide who
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you become. The betrayal doesn't. The failure
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doesn't. The rejection doesn't. The disappointment
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doesn't. The delay doesn't. The accusation doesn't.
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The loss doesn't. The wilderness doesn't. God
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can still work. God can still redeem. God can
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still teach. God can still restore. God can still
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redirect. God can still refine. What they meant
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for evil may have pushed you towards something
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they never intended. Joseph's brothers wanted
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him gone. They helped move him toward Egypt.
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Potiphar's wife wanted him punished. Prison eventually
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connected him with Pharaoh's officials. The chain
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did not make sense while Joseph was living it.
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But later, purpose gave perspective to pain.
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Sometimes people think they are removing you
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from something, and God uses the movement to
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reposition you. Sometimes rejection forces you
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to discover something you never would have pursued.
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Sometimes a closed door redirects your attention.
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Sometimes disappointment reveals misplaced dependence.
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Sometimes losing people's approval teaches you
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to live without it. Sometimes the battle drives
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you deeper into prayer. Sometimes the thing that
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shook your confidence teaches you to depend upon
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God instead of yourself. Again, we don't have
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to call the painful thing good, but we can say,
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God, if it happened, Don't let it be wasted.
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Even your failure can become part of your formation.
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This may be difficult to hear correctly, so listen
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carefully. Sin is not necessary for spiritual
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growth. We do not need to fail in order for God
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to teach us. We should never deliberately choose
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wrong because we think God will use it. But when
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we genuinely fail and genuinely repent, God's
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mercy can teach us through what happened. Peter's
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denial taught him something about self -confidence.
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David's failure revealed the devastating consequences
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of uncontrolled desire and misuse of authority.
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John Mark's early departure did not prevent him
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from later becoming useful. Paul never forgot
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the kind of man grace had rescued. Your failure
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can teach you boundaries. Humility, dependence,
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accountability, compassion, watchfulness, the
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danger of pride, the necessity of prayer, the
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value of correction. So don't glorify the failure.
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Glorify the God whose mercy refused to let failure
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have the final word. Your scars may become part
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of how you serve somebody else. Jesus told Peter,
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when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers.
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That is extraordinary. Peter's restored life
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would eventually become useful to other people.
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The thing that humbled him would influence how
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he strengthened others. There are lessons you
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understand differently after living through them.
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You speak differently about failure after mercy
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finds you. You speak differently about grief
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after you have cried. You speak differently.
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about waiting after you have waited. You speak
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differently about temptation after you have discovered
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your vulnerability. You speak differently about
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restoration after you have needed it. Your scars
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do not make you superior, but healed scars can
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make you compassionate. Maybe somebody will survive
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because you are willing to say, I know what that
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valley feels like. I know what shame feels like.
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I know what waiting feels like. I know what it
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means to need mercy. And I also know God can
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meet you there. The fire was preparing your capacity.
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Remember our last conversations, integrity, discipline,
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self -control, correction, mercy, stewardship,
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the weight of blessing. These are connected.
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Character develops. Discipline strengthens. Self
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-control protects. Integrity makes you trustworthy.
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Trustworthiness increases your capacity to carry
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responsibility. Maybe you were asking God for
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greater responsibility while God was developing
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greater character. Maybe you were asking for
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influence while God was strengthening integrity.
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Maybe you were asking for abundance. While God
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was teaching stewardship. Maybe you were asking
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for leadership. While God was teaching humility.
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Maybe you were asking for a platform. While God
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was teaching you how to live when nobody applauds.
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Maybe you were asking for the palace. While God
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was developing something in Potiphar's house
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and the prison. Preparation is also progress.
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And now perhaps you understand why some lessons
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matter. The blessing carries weight and God cares
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about who you become while carrying it. But don't
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turn this into a formula. We have to preserve
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this truth. Not every difficult season means
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a promotion is coming. Not every loss means God
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is about to replace it with something bigger.
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Not every waiting season ends with the exact
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thing you requested. Not every faithful person
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receives earthly success Christianity is not
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Endure enough pain and God will reward you with
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money promotion or influence Jesus himself suffered
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the Apostles suffered Some faithful believers
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have walked through enormous hardship without
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receiving the earthly outcome. They hoped for
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Our ultimate hope is not success Our ultimate
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hope is Christ. So when we say refined for a
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purpose, purpose is bigger than promotion. Purpose
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may mean becoming more like Christ, more faithful,
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more loving, more disciplined, more courageous,
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more compassionate, more useful, more surrendered.
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Sometimes the greatest thing produced by the
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fire is not a new position. It is a transformed
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person. Maybe the purpose was bigger than the
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thing you lost. Sometimes we become so focused
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on recovering what was lost that we cannot imagine
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God doing something beyond it. We want the old
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door reopened, the old relationship restored,
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the old position returned, the old opportunity
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recreated. And sometimes God does restore those
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things, but sometimes he doesn't. Sometimes restoration
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is not going backward. Sometimes restoration
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is discovering that God still has a future, even
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when yesterday cannot be reconstructed. Purpose
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is bigger than position. Purpose is bigger than
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a title. Purpose is bigger than one opportunity.
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Purpose is bigger than one person's approval.
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Purpose is bigger than one closed door. God is
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not limited to the version of your future you
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originally imagined. Sometimes the fire burns
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away not only impurities, but also our insistence
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that God must fulfill purpose exactly the way
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we expect it. Faith eventually learns to pray,
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God, I surrender not only my life to you, I surrender
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my version of how my life must unfold. Now you
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understand why you couldn't take everything with
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you. This is why our last conversation mattered.
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Some things could not follow you. The bitterness
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had to go. The pride had to go. The need for
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revenge had to go. The uncontrolled reactions
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had to go. The weak boundaries had to change.
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The unhealthy dependence had to change. The need
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to prove yourself had to go. The comparison had
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to go. The old compromise had to go. Because
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sometimes God is preparing a future that requires
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you to travel lighter. You cannot carry every
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wound forever. You cannot carry every offense
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forever. You cannot carry every old identity
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forever. You cannot carry every old relationship
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in the same way forever. You cannot carry every
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habit forever. At some point, you take the lesson
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and leave the weight. The person coming out should
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not be identical to the person who went in. If
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you walk through the fire and learn nothing,
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something was wasted. But if you come out praying
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differently, something happened. If you come
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out humbler, something happened. If you come
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out wiser, something happened. If you come out
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with stronger boundaries, something happened.
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If you come out more disciplined, something happened.
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If you come out less dependent upon applause,
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something happened. If you come out more compassionate,
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something happened. If you come out knowing how
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much you need God, something happened. If you
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come out able to forgive, something happened.
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If you come out with integrity strengthened,
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something happened. Maybe the miracle wasn't
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only that you came out, maybe the miracle is
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who came out. There are fires you should never
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have to repeat, not because God mechanically
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gives you the same test until you pass, but because
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wisdom should remember. If God showed you the
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danger of poor boundaries, remember. If you learned
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what pride can cost, remember. If uncontrolled
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anger damaged something, remember If exhaustion
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made you vulnerable, remember If isolation weakened
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you, remember If ignoring conviction led somewhere
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painful, remember If prayer carried you, remember
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If accountability protected you, remember If
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scripture anchored you, remember If God carried
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you when you had nothing left, remember The lesson
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becomes part of the refinement. Don't waste it.
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And now, look at the fire differently. Maybe
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you once looked at this season and only saw what
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it took. Now look again. What did it teach? What
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did it expose? What did it remove? What did it
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strengthen? What did it redirect? What did it
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clarify? Who disappeared? Who remained? What
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became less important? What became more important?
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What did you discover about God? What did you
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discover about yourself? What prayer became deeper?
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What boundary became clearer? What conviction
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became stronger? What illusion died? What faith
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survived? Maybe you still don't understand everything.
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That's okay. You don't need to force meaning
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onto every detail. But perhaps you understand
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enough to say, I am not the same person. And
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maybe that is where purpose begins becoming visible.
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Refine doesn't mean perfect. Let me make this
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clear before we finish. You are not leaving this
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season perfect. I am not leaving this conversation
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suggesting that mature Christians reach a place
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where weakness disappears. We remain dependent
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upon grace. We continue growing. We continue
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learning. We continue needing correction. We
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continue needing the Holy Spirit. We continue
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practicing discipline. We continue guarding integrity.
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Refinement is not perfection. Refinement is transformation.
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It is becoming more responsive to God. more aware
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of your weaknesses, quicker to repent, slower
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to justify compromise, more willing to receive
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correction, more intentional about boundaries,
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more dependent upon grace, more committed to
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integrity, more faithful with what God places
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in your hands. The refiner is still working.
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And maybe that is the purpose. Romans 8, 29 follows
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the verse we love to quote in Romans 8, 28. After
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telling us that God works in all things for good
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according to His purpose, Paul speaks about being
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conformed to the image of His Son that gives
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us something profound. Maybe the deepest good
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God is producing is not simply comfortable circumstances.
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Maybe He is forming Christ in us. a character
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that looks more like Jesus, integrity, love,
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patience, courage, humility, obedience, self
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-control, compassion, faithfulness. Jesus endured
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temptation without compromise, popularity without
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pride, rejection without losing identity, power
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without corruption, false accusation, Without
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surrendering truth, suffering without abandoning
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obedience, if refinement makes us more like Christ,
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then the purpose goes far beyond the temporary
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season. This is what the fire was producing.
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Maybe now we can finally say it. The fire was
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producing endurance. The fire was producing wisdom.
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The fire was producing discernment. The fire
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was producing humility. The fire was producing
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discipline. The fire was producing stronger boundaries.
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The fire was producing deeper prayer. The fire
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was producing compassion. The fire was producing
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dependence upon God. The fire was producing integrity.
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The fire was producing faith that had been tested.
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The fire was producing someone capable of carrying
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responsibility differently, and perhaps the fire
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was producing a testimony. Not, look how strong
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I am, but look how faithful God has been. Not,
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I survived because I had everything under control.
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But, God carried me when I didn't. Not, I never
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failed. But, mercy found me when I did. Not.
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Nothing hurt me, but what hurt me did not get
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to determine who I became. So what do you do
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now? You move forward, but differently. You don't
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return to Egypt. You don't rebuild what conviction
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tore down. You don't resurrect what repentance
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buried. You don't abandon the boundaries that
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protected you. You don't forget the God you needed
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in the wilderness when you arrive in the place
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you prayed for. You don't let blessing replace
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dependence. You don't let promotion replace humility.
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You don't let influence replace integrity. You
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don't let success silence prayer. You don't let
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yesterday's failure become tomorrow's identity.
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You don't let yesterday's betrayal become tomorrow's
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bitterness. You take the lesson. You take the
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wisdom. You take the humility. You take the discipline.
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You take the testimony. You take the deeper faith
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and you keep walking. And now I want to speak
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directly to you. Maybe you are listening to this
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while still in the fire. Then perhaps this finale
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is not yet describing your past. Maybe it is
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describing what you are hoping to see. You may
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still be waiting, still hurting, still asking
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questions, still trying to understand, still
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praying for the door to open, still asking God
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for intervention. Then don't force yourself to
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pretend everything makes sense. Faith does not
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require pretending. But hold on to this. Your
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current chapter is not necessarily your final
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conclusion. You may not yet know what God is
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doing behind the scenes. You may not yet understand
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what this season is producing. But stay close
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to God. Stay teachable. Stay prayerful. Stay
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accountable. Stay in His Word. Guard your heart.
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Guard your integrity. Receive correction. Practice
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discipline. Refuse bitterness. And when the fire
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reveals something, give it to the refiner. Don't
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waste the fire. One day you may look back differently.
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Maybe one day you will look at the season that
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almost broke you and recognize the place where
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you learned to pray. Maybe you will look at the
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rejection and recognize where you stopped living
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for approval. Maybe you will look at the failure
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and recognize where pride finally broke. Maybe
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you will look at the waiting and recognize where
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endurance grew. Maybe you will look at the correction
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and recognize where your character changed. Maybe
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you will look at the closed door and recognize
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where your direction changed. Maybe you will
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look at the wilderness and recognize where you
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discovered God could sustain you. And perhaps
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you will say, I would never choose everything
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that happened to me, but I can see that God did
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not waste it. That is different from calling
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pain good. That is testimony. The fire didn't
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get the final word. So as we close this season,
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I want to leave you with this declaration. The
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fire did not get the final word. The betrayal
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did not get the final word. The accusation did
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not get the final word. The rejection did not
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get the final word. The disappointment did not
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get the final word. The failure did not get the
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final word. The shame did not get the final word.
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The delay did not get the final word. The wilderness
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did not get the final word. Even the version
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of you who entered the fire does not get the
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final word. God is still working. Grace is still
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working. The Holy Spirit is still transforming.
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And the refiner is still refining. This was never
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just about surviving. Maybe at the beginning
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you prayed, God, just get me through this. And
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God did carry you. But now you realize there
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was more happening. You were learning. You were
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changing. You were surrendering. You were being
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corrected. You were discovering weaknesses. You
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were building discipline. You were learning integrity.
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You were receiving mercy. You were developing
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capacity. You were learning stewardship. You
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were releasing what could not follow you. And
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perhaps now, you can finally look at the journey
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and say, I understand. Not everything. Maybe
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never everything. But enough. Enough to know
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that God was present. Enough to know that grace
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was working. Enough to know that the fire did
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not destroy everything. Enough to know that something
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came out stronger. Enough to know that your story
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is still being written. Enough to know that purpose
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is still alive. And enough to declare, I was
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refined for a purpose. I will not waste the pain.
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I will not waste the correction. I will not waste
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the lesson. I will not waste the mercy. I will
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not waste the second chance. I will not waste
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the wisdom. I will not waste the testimony. I
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will not waste the fire. What God removed, I
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will not keep rebuilding. What God taught me,
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I will not intentionally forget. What God entrusted
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to me, I will steward. Where God corrected me,
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I will remain teachable. Where God restored me,
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I will remain grateful. Where God strengthened
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me, I will remain humble. and whatever comes
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next I will enter it differently not perfect
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but refined not without scars but wiser not without
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a past but no longer imprisoned by it not depending
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upon myself but depending upon God because now
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I know the fire was not my destination the fire
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was part of my preparation and the God who was
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with me before the fire The God who was with
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me in the fire will still be God when I walk
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out of it. So I move forward with deeper faith,
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with greater wisdom, with stronger integrity,
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with humility, with discipline, with gratitude,
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with mercy, with purpose. And with this testimony,
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God did not waste the fire. I was, I am, and
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I will continue to be refined for a purpose.
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This is Pamoja Ministry. And wherever you are
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in your journey today, remember, the refiner
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is not finished with you. Keep walking. Keep
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believing. Keep becoming. And may everything
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God has taught you in the fire prepare you to
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faithfully carry whatever he places in your hands
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next. Always remember, you are not alone.