In the words of its author, Kay Arthur, As Silver Refined is “a book about God – about His sovereignty and His trustworthiness. It’s also…a book about battle and for battle – not an entertainment or a diversionary escape from reality but a soldier’s manual for everyday life as it really is.” (p. 262)

The overall goal of this book, I think, is to help the reader better handle life’s inevitable disappointments. When you lose your job, fail in your relationships, or struggle financially the easiest thing is to lose hope and begin spiraling down what Kay refers to as the “5 Deadly D’s” of disappointment, discouragement, dejection, despair and, finally, demoralization.

Rather than becoming discouraged, however, Scripture encourages us to recognize every disappointment as God’s Divine appointment, whereby we have the opportunity to “grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” (II Peter 3:18)

Unfortunately, while I’m certainly a fan of the main point this book emphasizes, I found myself disagreeing with the author on so many of her other teachings that I find it very difficult to recommend this book. On multiple occasions she undermines the seriousness of divorce and the consequences of suicide, which is not a good idea when you’re writing primarily to people who are depressed or at least discouraged. In any religious book I know disagreements like this have to be expected, but when they seem to show up in every chapter it makes the book very difficult to enjoy.

As Silver Refined is 356 pages long, 80 of which consist of a study guide inserted at the end of the volume. I give it 2.5 stars out of a possible 5.

Disclaimer: I received this book free of charge from Waterbrook Multnomah Publishing Group in exchange for my honest review. All expressed opinions are uncensored and uninfluenced by them.

We all know the story of when Jesus called Peter and Andrew to leave their nets, follow Him, and become “fisher’s of men.” (Matthew 4) I find it very interesting that Christ appealed to them, not only using terminology they could understand, but also by demonstrating that to follow Him didn’t necessarily mean giving up all they held dear. They were fishers, and the kingdom of God certainly needed a handful of devout fisherman in its service.

Likewise, I believe it’s important for us to remember that God has endowed each one of us with specific spiritual gifts for us to use in His service (I Corinthians 12). Some of us are passionate about education or the ministry (I Corinthians 12:8; Romans 12:7), while others find their joy in volunteering their time and money to those in need (Romans 12:8). Whatever gets you excited, serving God doesn’t always mean giving that up; 95% of the time there’s a way for you to glorify God right where you are, doing what He created you to enjoy.

“Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.”

               -I Corinthians 10:31

It probably won’t take you long after reading this to think of at least a couple things you’re passionate about. If it’s sports, then perhaps you should consider running in a marathon for charity; if it’s web design, then make a website pointing people to Christ; if it’s nature, then create an outdoors-themed blog and write short devotionals once or twice a week . There’s certainly going to be times as a Christian when we’ve got to make sacrifices for the Lord, but God never intended fulfilling our life’s calling to be a burden.

Just to satisfy your curiosity before you go any further into this post, the above photo was taken by Voyager 1 from more than 3.7 billion miles outside our atmosphere. Can you see the very small, blue speck about two-thirds of the way down in the orange ray of light? That’s us. Planet earth, as big as it may seem to you and me, is really nothing more than a speck of dust in the infinite realm of outer space. Now hold that thought as you read this Scripture.

“Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:
Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God:
But made Himself of no reputation, and took upon Him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men:
And being found in fashion as a man, He humbled Himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.”

               -Philippians 2:5-8

You and I are temporary residents on a temporary planet. We drive temporary cars, live in temporary houses and are ourselves often consumed with temporary pursuits. Yet the Lord of all Creation – the very One Who spoke and created our galaxy and the hundreds of billions of stars it contains –  took on flesh and died a horrible death on our behalf. We may be nothing more than a blue speck in a photograph from NASA, but we are greatly valued in the eyes of God for reasons beyond human comprehension.

Whatever you’re facing today, be reminded of God’s amazing love for you. Your life is worth something to Him, not because any of us are technically significant, but because we are created in His image and for His glory. He so loved you that He gave His only begotten Son (John 3:16). Believe on Him today.

“But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.”

               -Matthew 6:33

In these tough economic times, I know I’m not the only one who’s realized the need to create a weekly budget to help keep me on track financially. Without a definite course charted out I often find it difficult to stay motivated and am very liable to spend a little bit more money than is appropriate on unnecessary things, such as eating out and texting.

In the same way, it’s often necessary for a Christian to budget their time in order to maintain a close relationship with God. If you are regularly missing out on prayer, Bible study and church due to a supposed lack of time, then consider putting your facebook account on hold for a while and reprioritizing your schedule. Put God first and make everything else revolve around His place in your heart.

“And if thy hand offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter into life maimed, than having two hands to go into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched.”

               -Mark 9:43

For some of you, finding time to spend with God might mean setting your alarm 20 minutes early next week and trying to remember where you last had your Bible. For others, you may have to do nothing more than close your web browser after reading this post and go implement what you’ve just read. Whatever sacrifice you find necessary, just remember that it is no sacrifice to have a relationship with the living God. “So likewise ye, when ye shall have done all those things which are commanded you, say, We are unprofitable servants: we have done that which was our duty to do.” (Luke 17:10)

“Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith.”

               -Galatians 3:24

At least in America, it seems that many people have stopped responding to the Christian message. We know from what Christ taught us that iniquity will abound everywhere in the last days and that the love of many will wax cold (Matt. 24:12); but I also believe most Christians are not shining as the light of the world and thus contribute to the problem as well (Matt 5:14).

What we must do to remedy this is simply to quit sugar-coating sin and show the world their desperate need for redemption. As A.B. Earle once said, “[The world] must see themselves lost before they will cry for mercy. They will not escape from danger until they see it.”  The law is what leads us to Christ (Gal. 3:24), and yet many times we have attempted to replace our historically faithful schoolmaster with bribes of joy, peace, and happiness to anyone who will merely recite the sinner’s prayer.

“What shall we say then? Is the law sin? God forbid. Nay, I had not known sin, but by the law: for I had not known lust, except the law had said, Thou shalt not covet.”

               -Romans 7:7

If we want to again see people saved by the thousands and experience the revival we’ve all been anticipating, then it’s essential we get back to God’s version of the gospel and preach His rightly divided Word “in season and out of season.” (II Tim. 4:2, 2:15) We may not tickle as many ears or become a mega-church, but those who do respond will be far more likely to persevere in their faith than those who were never accurately shown their need for a Savior.

If you’re reading this post, then kudos to you for even clicking on something you knew would be about hell. Most people prefer to spend their free time doing something other than reading about eternal punishment on the Internet, but you really have to admit that it pays to be prepared if there’s even a slight chance this terrible place exists.

In his book “Hell, Rob Bell, and What Happens When People Die” Bobby Conway does a great job of clearing up the recent confusion in regard to hell, while also making an effort to show us the one and only way to heaven: Jesus Christ. While there were a few things I think should’ve been included in chapter 9 on how to be saved (a few more words on repentance and perseverance, perhaps?), I still feel comfortable recommending this book to you as a great resource on the concepts of eternity, heaven, hell, and as Rob Bell put it, “the fate of every person who ever lived.”

In addition to this volume’s convenient length of only 77 pages and price of only $3.99 on CBD, I also noted a significant reliance on God’s Word as the backbone for Conway’s arguments – a huge plus, to say the least. Rather than inserting a passage of Scripture here and there merely to give his work a level of credibility among Christians, he seems to be more concerned with the Bible’s credibility than his own and thus points his readers to an infallible source of truth rather than his own potentially fallible interpretation of it. Just to give you an idea of what I’m talking about, here’s an excerpt taken from page 35:

“Remember, our first response always should be “What does the Bible say?” not “What do I want it to say?” We don’t have the right to change it to fit our comfort level. Ultimately, we aren’t in charge of history, hell, or anything for that matter. God’s in charge, and He decides what’s just and what isn’t. If we are wise, we will adjust our ideas about heaven and hell to align with His.”

Basically, this book explains the reality of hell, the eternality of hell, the reason for hell, and the escape from hell.  If you are at all curious about these issues, or perhaps just looking for a more efficient way of explaining them to others, then I highly recommend this book and give it 4 out of 5 stars.

Rate This Review For Your Chance to Win a Free Book

Disclaimer: I received this book free of charge from Waterbrook Multnomah Publishing Group in exchange for my honest review. All expressed opinions are uncensored and uninfluenced by them.