Last night, I lay in my bed trying to slow the stormy thoughts that were swirling in my head before I went to sleep. Through the clouds emerged a reminder of the word I have been thinking about as my “2025 word.”
Forge.
This word came to me before I learned about the new movie released early this year called The Forge, a Christian movie about the importance of having a circle around you to train and disciple your faith (highly recommend watching, by the way). And while I strongly believe in having this kind of community (I refer to mine as “my village”), last night I had some new words come to mind surrounding that word forge.
Heat. Pressure. Fire. Building. Constructing. Melting. Refining.
Some of those words are not comfortable. We don’t like heat and pressure. They don’t feel safe or cozy whatsoever.
And yet.
Within a forge, we find the broken being repaired and improved, often so that it is stronger than before.
Within a forge, we find refinement. We find metal being melted, impurities rising to the top and being removed so what remains is stronger and better than before.
Within a forge, we find transformation. We find metal being shaped and made into something else, something new. We find dull edges being sharpened and elongated. We find the ordinary becoming extraordinary.
Metal cannot be shaped without being melted and subjected to pressure like hammering and pulling. Sometimes the pressure in our lives feels a lot like being super-heated and hammered on as well. It’s not fun. It’s hard work that requires us to surrender to the process. But without surrendering to the forge, we will not change and move forward.
I find myself in the forge right now. Honestly, I’m not having a good time. But I’m choosing to shift my perspective and lean into the process of seeing the forge in a new light.
Fix your eyes on Jesus (Hebrews 12:2)
Open to new opportunities (Isaiah 30:21)
Renew your mind (Romans 12:2)
Go where He sends you (Matthew 28:19-20)
Expect Him to show up (Jeremiah 29:12-14)
Let’s unpack these references a little:
Hebrews 12:2 says, “Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who, for the joy set before Him, endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God” (NIV). Jesus endured the ultimate forge: the cross. He endured–more than that, He overcame and is seated at God’s right hand now interceding for us! The cross and the grave forged a way for us to walk with Him from here on earth into eternity. We should fix our eyes on Him in the midst of our forge, following His example and knowing that we are being refined every moment to become more like Him.
Isaiah 30:21 says, “Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, ‘This is the way; walk in it’” (NIV). When we walk in such a way that we are open to new opportunities, we will hear direction from our Lord, guiding us forward within His plans. We aren’t cast adrift in the forge; He is overseeing and guiding the process and speaking direction to us.
Romans 12:2 says, “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is–His good, pleasing, and perfect will” (NIV). One of the words I used to describe the forge was transformation. Knowing Jesus brings about transformation of our minds and our lives. The longer we walk with Him, the more change we’ll see. It won’t always be easy. Some things will fall away naturally, but some things will need to be pried from our tightly grasping hands. Going through the forge will help loosen our grip and refine us into the image of Jesus more and more.
Matthew 28:19-20 says, “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age” (NIV). This is Jesus commissioning and sending us out. We are not meant to stay stagnant in one place; we are to go and meet the world and show them Jesus. The invitation of the Great Commission is to be faithful and follow where He leads.
Jeremiah 29:12-14 says, “‘Then you will call on Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. You will seek Me and find Me when you seek Me with all your heart. I will be found by you,’ declares the LORD, ‘and bring you back from captivity’” (NIV). We must seek God out and expect that He will answer when we do. He invited the nation of Israel to do just that when they were facing exile in Babylon, and promised that He would answer when they sought Him out. He promises the same for us, which allows us to expect that He WILL answer us when we seek Him out in the forge.
He does not leave us to endure the shaping and refining of the forge alone. He is with us every step, speaking timeless promises through the Bible, and guiding the shaping process with His tender nail-scarred hands. Because of His presence in the fire with us, we can and will endure, and come out on the other side stronger than before.
Easy? Nope.
Necessary? You bet.
If, like me, you find yourself in the fires of the forge today, hang on to those promises from scripture. God is at work, and He has not left you to face this alone. Let the process take its course, be faithful to His leading, and you will see His hand transform your life every time.
Hang in there, friend. He’s got this.
Blessings,
~Lynne
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