STREET-SMART WITH THE REFINER'S FIRE

A depth charge with pruning shears...

• Psalm 91:1 “He that dwelleth in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.”

  Psalm 23:1, 3 “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want…He restores my soul; he leads me in the path of righteousness for his name sake.”

  Titus 3:5 : “Not by works of righteousness that we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost.”

• My default, still way too much, is WORRY. Mom had it, Dad had it, oldest Brother had it, likely Mom’s siblings as well. Yes, some emotional troubles are generational, with discouragement and depression in the noxious mix.

• I sometimes (unwisely) jokingly describe myself as “a Barbarian.” Actually, I’m just blunt. I am polite, I am dignified, I am an empath who deeply feels the suffering of others and I am blunt. Is that Barbarian??

• My Pastor spoke this last Sunday, about the Refiner’s Fire, that very intense manner in which God begins to deeply cleanse, remove dross and change each of us who follows Him, more toward the likeness of His dear Son Jesus Christ. I have a good friend and fellow writer here on Substack, Dr. Gary, “the tooth elf,” who writes about his past work as a very gifted physician in the dental field. He recently spoke very eloquently of his work in making a cast for a tooth, using gold.

  He described the process of removing the dross from the gold, fascinating!! God does the same thing, administered through the spiritual realm and affecting us in the physical realm.

• Doing “our own thing” does not work for God. He is structured as well as free-form and He can help the worst offender out of the worst disasters ever. He knows things. He has experience and wisdom we do not have. Pastor used the theme of “pruning shears” as a template for change.

• Well, my gardening expertise being “place plant in soil, add water. Repeat”, is rather limited so I had to rely on my fellows in the congregation, to discuss pruning in their own gardens. Have you ever seen pruning shears???

  Brrrr....formidable.

• Removing the dead leaves, branches, the debilatated, the sick, the downturned...seems quite focused destruction, yes? Do I wanna be part of “focused destruction”???

  What do YOU think?

• Here’s some blunt elements of W.E.W: Cantankerous. Irritable. Cranky. Impatient. Grumbly. Still cynical and negative…(had enough?)

  But (BUT) I can still take one step toward God. I can take another step. I can take even one more step... (well, I once was a toddler learning to walk…)

• Well, where do these steps lead?? Papa God, WHERE? I hate to admit, sometimes I’m scared… I mean, I do have formidable history as a street-smart big city gal and have not lost that presence. Also, Refiner’s Fire seems like…a depth charge…dropped over my comfort zone and DISRUPTING…(AKA Refining…)

• Do I need a battleship nudge?? I’ve been on the sea alone in a spiritual rowboat...vast, rocking waves, salty, cold, WHAT??

  Refining... joy mixed with discombobulation...

• And yet...I wandered away from God once...for 35 flipping years as a Prodigal to my Christian faith. DON’T DO THAT AGAIN, W.E.W. NOT GOOD.

  Remember, one step, one step, one day, one day? Remember “bring all your cares directly to God, every day??” They are heavy, don’t haul them!

  Sometimes we ALL need help, even the suave and debonair with nary a care in the world (as an empath, I can usually see through the filters of others....and I see the scared, wide-eyed hidden little kid acting all tough...but just under the surface lies the inner displacement.) We are desperate to hide our weakness and flaws.

• Nope, cannot hide from God, I have tried and failed many times. People try to hide, such as the following:

  The “ rough-tough”

  The blithe

  The urbane and smooth

  The overconfident

  The clueless

  The beaten-down by troubles ( many of whom I encountered in my 31 years in San Francisco.)

  Refining. Pruning. Regeneration.

• I think that is why we fight and resist the Refiners Fire. I believe ( I’m an expert at this, remember?) that people expect God will flatten you like a bug...

  Shock therapy? On occasion, He will ( see book of Job)...but often when we simply lay our battle mode down and cooperate with God...He will make refining a little easier. Not too easy, it is refining, after all...but it also does not need to be brutal, either, if we partner with Him in the daily process, a bit at a time.

• Papa God teaches me so graciously and seamlessly in my daily life, it is truly astounding. The lessons from humble daily life are the manner in which God shows me a better way than my constant, furrowed-brow-struggling personality.

• I am still so vulnerable to stress...don’t handle it well. Going this week to do some regular humble work for about 90 minutes in a wonderful place near where I live, I had my routine set. Arriving, I was in my “rattled” mindset, too often too affected by that worried state. I unlocked one door to enter, did a couple of brief things with plants just outside the door and coming back inside to continue my work...same work each week...I FORGOT TO LOCK THE SIDE DOOR. As I was working inside alone for about ninety minutes, I always keep doors locked, never lost my San Francisco street-smart defensive mode. That day, I failed.

  As I finished my work and prepared to leave, stepping outside, I was shocked to silence that I LEFT THE SIDE DOOR UNLOCKED. I have never done that before. Defense mode kicks in. I batten down the hatches. Pull up the drawbridge, lock the gate, activate the dragons... ( I am sadly, still too good at this…)

  Not today…Some of the Host of Heaven and my Guardian Angels kept watch.

  God had my back despite my raw and grubby emotions. THIS IS ACTUAL STUNNING STUFF. This is the very REAL mercy of God, displayed. This is an element of the Refiner’s Fire.

• Like I say, never play poker or chess with Papa, you will lose...and He will hand you the prize.

  NO ONE LIKE GOD.

  NO ONE.

  Refining. Pruning . Regeneration.

• God, I’m not good at this world...but You are. Would You continue to help me??Would you help another struggling person out there as well?

  Wendy Elizabeth Williams Friday, January 2, 2026

• --Consider becoming a paid subscriber at $5.00 a month or $60 per year. To all my paid subscribers, please know I have humble respect for each and every one of you and place NO pressure on you to continue to be a paid subscriber. I know life has changes and if you ever need to stop being a paid subscriber, please contact Substack help directly or send me a Direct Message on Substack Notes and I will help you! I always want to be worthy of the trust of funds invested into my writing work. I take nothing for granted.

  --Consider donating any amount from $1 and up, to my Ko-fi page at Ko-fi.com/wendyelizabethwilliams. Not sure if the hyperlink below works, I tried and it does not seem to show “blue” but if it does not work, you can easily type in the address as above. (Buy Wendy Elizabeth Williams a Coffee). You can donate one time, periodically or monthly as you want. Also, I am having a great time writing one shorter piece per week and placing on my Ko-fi, focusing mainly on my life-long love of all things fabric, garments and beauty, as well as the centuries-long battles between the two tribes of humanity, male and female. Each Friday night after I put up my longer weekly piece on Substack, I place my shorter Ko-fi piece on Substack Notes, as well as my Ko-fi page itself. I now have at least 40-50 pieces saved! This week’s piece is on my familiar theme of those who insist on being exhibitionists and pouring their body parts visually all over the place, as if certain physical parts are enshrined in their soul. I call it “Don’t worship the body.” I think this is sad stuff…we need some honorable parameters, more than ever.

  —I remain a “micro-entrepreneur”, a business of me, myself and I, with Holy Spirit as my writing coach. Keep in touch if that is your description as well! Send me a DM on Notes or a message on Ko-fi.

  —Pray for me, please! Thank you!