cooking pots to diamonds

My last entry was a testimony of what God is doing in Red Hill. Today I am writing to praise Him for the work He's been doing in my heart. It would be difficult to describe in detail the lessons I've been learning and the challenges I've been given the grace to overcome. Thankfully, God gave me two pictures this weekend which describe perfectly the process He's taking me through. The first picture was of a big crusty, rugged black cooking pot hanging over a long abandoned fire pit. It's contents had been sitting for a long time, and had sunk to the bottom of the pot and solidified. However, a fire was lit under the pot, and the contents began to liquify. Then, God came with a big wooden spoon and began stirring everything around. All the nasty stuff that had been lying at the bottom for who knows how long began to rise to the surface and swirl around. That's what's happening to me right now; all the lies I've believed, all the bad habits I've formed, and all the ugly, impure stuff in my life is being brought to the surface in the fire of my experiences at CPx. Despite how ugly and horrible this picture seems, however, there is a beautiful outcome, which God revelaed in the second picture. He showed me a perfectly cut diamond with no blemishes. God told me that when He is finished working in my life during this season, my life will be like that diamond. He will shine His light into my life and because of the work he has done in me, I will refract the light and shine it into the world even more beautiful than it was when it shone in! This picture confirms a verse I came across in my quiet time back on February 25. At the time it felt like a promise for me and now I know that it was; 2 Corinthians 3:18 says "And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory." I am so encouraged by this hope of being transformed to be more like Jesus. That is the desire of my heart, and I am humbled and so grateful that God has promised me he will carry out this process. So, even though now I am going through one of the most challenging seasons of my life with all I am experiencing at CPx, I know that it will produce the greatest reward. The verse a friend gave me yesterday confirms this; "Let us not grow weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up." (Galatians 6:9) Praise God for all he's doing in me! :)