Zechariah 13:7–9 // Refining fire // Jeff Ziolkowski
Think about precious metals for a moment. Gold bars are often stamped “99.9% Pure” and labeled 24 karat. That’s the highest quality gold you can get, and it only reaches that level after going through intense refining. Gold doesn’t come out of the ground pure — it’s mixed with other metals and impurities. To separate them, refiners heat the gold to extremely high temperatures, over 2,000 degrees Fahrenheit, until it melts. The unwanted metals rise and are removed. Then the process is repeated again and again until the gold reaches that 99.9% purity.
Scripture tells us our lives are refined in a similar way. The Bible uses a big word — sanctification — which simply means the lifelong process of God shaping and refining us. Day by day, our faith is tested. The situations we walk into today and tomorrow aren’t random; God uses them to build endurance and focus in us. He wants us locked in on His mission: love Him, love others, and make disciples. Sometimes He uses gentle nudges, and other times firmer guardrails, to keep us moving in that direction.
There will be days that feel like fire. But those are often the very moments when God is doing His deepest work.
- Are you reading this from a hospital bed? You may be a missionary cleverly disguised as a patient.
- Are you sitting in a tax office while the calculator keeps clicking? You’re a missionary cleverly disguised as a taxpayer.
- Are you at school during lunch while others are talking about you? You’re a missionary cleverly disguised as a student and friend.
- Are you caring for a spouse or loved one in the next room? You’re a missionary cleverly disguised as a caregiver.
Wherever you are, God can use you right there.
These refining fires aren’t meant to destroy us — they’re meant to purify us and keep pointing us back to the mission: love God, love people, and make disciples. That’s why James writes, “When you meet trials of various kinds… count it all joy” (James 1:2, ESV). Joy doesn’t come from the hardship itself, but from knowing God is shaping us for His purposes and His glory.
And in the end, there is a beautiful promise: we will call on His name and He will answer. He will say, “They are my people,” and we will say, “The Lord is my God” (Zechariah 13:9, ESV). Refining leads to relationship, clarity, and closeness with Him — and that is worth every step of the journey … not matter how hot the flames may be.
Question to Consider:
Can you see your circumstances as the refining fire of God in your life? And can you engage with God to see Him use this fire to purify you and make you the man or woman of God He can use to love Him, love others, and to make disciples?
Prompt for Prayer:
Ask God to help you see your circumstances as the purifying fire brought by Him to make you a better child of God who loves Him more dearly, who loves others more deeply, and who seeks to make disciples wherever you are.
