How many countless times have you turned to a psalm that David wrote, or Jeremiah’s faith declarations in Lamentations, or Job’s words? We are drawn to them again and again because they were crucible–words. 

We gain experiential knowledge of the Lord as we learn to lean hard on His grace. We have the living experience of Him being there for us, often in ways that we had never experienced Him before.

Trials purify, refine, fortify, and redefine our walk with the Lord. The chaff of self is burned off. Our crucible view gives us a new perspective. When Paul viewed his thorn in the flesh through the insights given, he gained a new appreciation for his weakness.

Here’s an illustration. Picture a piece of long human hair interwoven through the links of a heavy chain. Where is the weakness of the hair? It is hidden in the strength of the chain. Now see yourself through the lens of Colossians 3:3. It says, “For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.”