July 9

"I have chosen thee in the furnace of affliction." (Isa. 48:10)

Does not the Word come like a soft shower, assuaging¹ the fury of the flame? Yes, is it not an asbestos armor, against which the heat has no power? Let the affliction come━God has chosen me. Poverty, thou mayest stride in at my door; but God is in the house already, and He has chosen me. Sickness, thou mayest intrude²; but I have a balsam ready━God has chosen me. Whatever befall me in this vale of tears, I know that He has chosen me.

Fear not, Christian³; Jesus is with thee. In all thy fiery⁴ trials, His presence is both thy comfort and safety. He will never leave one whom He has chosen for His own. "Fear not, for I am with thee," is His sure word of promise to His chosen ones in "the furnace of affliction."(Gen.26:24) ━C. H. Spurgeon

Pain's furnace heat within me quivers,

God's breath upon the flame doth blow;

And all my heart in anguish⁵ shivers

And trembles at the fiery glow;

And yet I whisper, "As God will!"

And in the hottest fire hold still.

He comes and lays my heart, all heated,

On the hard anvil⁶, minded so

Into His own fair shape to beat it

With His great hammer, blow on blow;

And yet I whisper, "As God will!"

And at His heaviest blows hold still.

He takes my softened⁷ heart and beats it;

The sparks fly off at every blow;

He turns it o'er and o'er and heats it,

And lets it cool, and makes it glow;

And yet I whisper, "As God will!"

And in His mighty⁸ hand hold still.

Why should I murmur⁹? for the sorrow

Thus only longer-lived would be;

The end may come, and will tomorrow,

When God has done His work in me;

So I say trusting, "As God will!"

And, trusting to the end, hold still.

━Julius Sturm

The burden of suffering seems a tombstone hung about our necks, while in reality it is only the weight which is necessary to keep down the diver while he is hunting for pearls. ━Richter

七月九日

“你在苦难的炉中，我拣选你。” （赛四十八：10）

感谢神，神给了我们多大的安慰!这真像火焰中忽然来了一阵细雨，又像给我们穿上了一身耐火衣，使火势不能将我们焚伤。苦难阿，你尽管来罢，神已经拣选了我。贫穷阿，疾病阿，你们尽管来袭击我罢，神已经拣选了我。无论甚么患难临到我的时候，我就知道神已经拣选了我。

信徒阿，不要惧怕；主是常与你同在的。在你一切猛烈的试炼中，祂的同在是你的慰藉和平安。祂决不会离开祂为自己所拣选的。祂曾允许过：“不要惧怕，因为我与你同在”（创二十六：24）。━司布真

苦难的烈火在我心中焚烧，

神鼓着风，吹拨火焰，

我整个心灵，痛苦得抖泣，

在融融的火舌中受着考验；

我轻声说：“照神的意思”!

在烈火的燃烧时保持信念。

祂把我烧得通红的一颗心，

放在铁砧上，照祂的意愿，

用大铁锤重重敲击，

打成像祂那样完美的图案；

我轻说：“照神的旨意”！

在最重的打击下保持信念。

祂拿我烧软的心，再加敲炼，

每一锤都有火星飞溅，

翻来覆去，先要冷却，

一会儿又烧得火光闪闪，

我轻说：“照神的意思”！

在祂万能的手中保持信念。

我决不悲叹埋怨，

那无补于苦痛的收敛，

神做完了祂的工作，

也许明天就结束考验。

我虔诚地说：“照神的意思”！

我自始至终保持信念。

━朱尼斯.史坦

苦难的重负，并不是像挂在我们颈项上的墓碑，乃是像潜水采珠人那样，必须加一些重量，才可以使我们的身体沉到更深的水底。━韦西特

1 assuaging   

v.减轻( assuage的现在分词 )；缓和；平息；使安静

参考例句：

• The structure, aimed at assuaging concerns about Indonesian law, is commonly deployed. 该结构旨在规避印尼法律，目前得到广泛使用。 来自互联网
• In assuaging these worries, governments will have to balance two risks. 为了安抚这些忧虑，政府必须平衡两个风险。 来自互联网

2 intrude   

vi.闯入；侵入；打扰，侵扰

参考例句：

• I do not want to intrude if you are busy.如果你忙我就不打扰你了。
• I don't want to intrude on your meeting.我不想打扰你们的会议。

3 Christian   

adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒

参考例句：

• They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。
• His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。

4 fiery   

adj.燃烧着的，火红的；暴躁的；激烈的

参考例句：

• She has fiery red hair.她有一头火红的头发。
• His fiery speech agitated the crowd.他热情洋溢的讲话激动了群众。

5 anguish   

n.(尤指心灵上的)极度痛苦，烦恼

参考例句：

• She cried out for anguish at parting.分手时，她由于痛苦而失声大哭。
• The unspeakable anguish wrung his heart.难言的痛苦折磨着他的心。

6 anvil   

n.铁钻

参考例句：

• The blacksmith shaped a horseshoe on his anvil.铁匠在他的铁砧上打出一个马蹄形。
• The anvil onto which the staples are pressed was not assemble correctly.订书机上的铁砧安装错位。

7 softened   

（使）变软( soften的过去式和过去分词 )； 缓解打击； 缓和； 安慰

参考例句：

• His smile softened slightly. 他的微笑稍柔和了些。
• The ice cream softened and began to melt. 冰淇淋开始变软并开始融化。

8 mighty   

adj.强有力的；巨大的

参考例句：

• A mighty force was about to break loose.一股巨大的力量即将迸发而出。
• The mighty iceberg came into view.巨大的冰山出现在眼前。

9 murmur   

n.低语，低声的怨言；v.低语，低声而言

参考例句：

• They paid the extra taxes without a murmur.他们毫无怨言地交了附加税。
• There was a low murmur of conversation in the hall.大厅里有窃窃私语声。