Hot Stuff

The crucible for silver and the furnace for gold, but the LORD tests the heart.

Proverbs 17:3, New International Version




The engineer in me was intrigued by this verse as I was reading a few weeks ago and finally got back to taking a closer look. As I go through life's adventures, God desires that I seek him more clearly to develop a closer relationship with him. This verse is a picture of what God will do for me and how hard it is for me to follow His lead.

The melting point of silver is 1,762 degrees F.

The melting point of Gold is 1,946 degrees F.

Metals are melted in a crucible to get the heat concentration to maintain the very hot temperatures needed to turn the metal from a solid to a liquid so it can be formed in to something else. As the solid begins to melt the impurities embedded with the metal begin to separate as the temperature rises.

These impurities are call dross. A found a great definition of dross and what it means to get to the purest of metals as the impurities are separated from the valuable elements.


Dross- the scum formed on the surfaces of molten metals.

Nice picture...

To get to the purest of metals the heat separates the valuable metal from the impurities and forms the scum on the surface of the molten metal to be separated and thrown away in most case. In any event, the scum is taken away to reveal the metal in it's most precious form.

Ok, now my logic, which is not always logical!

If Silver is melted at 1762 degrees F. and Gold is melted at 1946 degrees F., What temperature does it take for God to test and melt my heart in the crucible of life?

Must be pretty hot!


I guess that is why I feel the heat some days. It is God melting away the dross so he can skim off the scum in my life. As he turns up the heat, the soul of my heart begins to purify and be more like him as I approach the day where I will be that pure unadulterated precious metal without the dross of this life. God sees me precious in his sight while on this side of eternity but desires to purify me and remove the scum that surrounds the real precious metal on the underside of the scum of life. The layer of dross in a crucible is very thin but it obscures the view of the prize. It is only when the scum is removed that the prize is revealed in full.

Lord,

Continue to refine me in the crucible of life.

Continue to turn up the heat to separate the dross from the preciousness of you

Continue to melt and test my heart


so what is seen when the scum is removed is my soul melted and reformed to follow you as the crucible of life gets ever more interesting on the Adventure in Middle Grove.