So that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 1 Peter 1:7

You don't really know what something is made of until you put it through the fire. You can post the Bible verse in your Instagram bio, you can say all the right things, you can show up to church, you can even rep the merch, but the real question is: what happens when life punches you in the gut?

You can claim to have faith when life’s going well. But what happens when you walk through heartbreak? Intrusive thoughts? Persecution? Loss? Confusion?

This is who Peter’s talking to. The believers who are really going through it. And what does he tell them? BE GLAD. Really Peter? You want me to be happy that painful and awful things are happening to me? 

Yes. Not because the pain is fun or feels good, but because life is abundantly more than what feels good. Be glad because it means you’re becoming something. 

You can either be comfortable or you can grow.

Think about that. We all want to grow, to change, to become more like Jesus. But nobody outright wants the process. The refining. The pruning. The becoming.

In John 15, Jesus tells us about our pruning. He says God cuts back even fruitful branches so they’ll be more fruitful. Why? Because pruning leads to becoming. God’s not out here trying to punish you. He’s shaping you. He’s forming something in you that comfort never could. If a branch is left unpruned, it means it’s been neglected. Pruning actually means God is near and that He cares deeply for you. 

So yeah, it’s hard. The fire is real. The pruning hurts. But don’t waste it. Let it refine you. Let it burn off the pride, the insecurity, and the impurities. Let it strengthen what is weak.

So be glad. Not in a fake, “everything’s fine” sort of way. Be glad in hope because this is where it gets real. This is where the Man of Suffering meets you and molds you into who He made you to be, and one day, you’ll look back and see it: that the fire didn’t consume you. It revealed the gold. In this moment, you’ll become all that God created you to be.

Is this who you’re becoming?