Called Into the Fire: Recognizing and Responding to God’s Refining Process
I believe someone I recently met in a small group is finding himself in the fiery furnace. As I listened to his story, I recognized the signs—signs I’ve come to know well after walking through the fire myself for the last three years. That conversation stirred something in me. I felt the Lord prompting me to write this post—not just for him, but for anyone God is calling into the furnace.
My heart is to share what I’ve learned, to encourage those in the fire, and to offer myself in service to those who are willing to commit to the process God has for them.
This assignment doesn’t shift the mission of Brave Action Ministry—it deepens it. The ministry exists to help Christians grow in their relationship with Christ and step into the fullness of who they are in Him. Part of that journey includes seasons of deep refinement, whether it’s the fiery furnace or an extended wilderness period. Both are part of how God transforms us from the inside out.
The aim of this post is to offer a high-level understanding of what the fiery furnace is, what it’s for, how to recognize if God is leading you into it, and what to expect if He is.
It’s not a step-by-step guide. It’s a roadmap—meant to help you recognize the terrain, understand the purpose, and remain grounded in truth as God does the deep work only He can do.
What is the Fiery Furnace, and How Do I Know God Is Leading Me Into The Fiery Furnace?
The Fiery Furnace Is
Biblically, the term fiery furnace originates from the story in Daniel 3, where Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego are thrown into a literal fire for refusing to worship a false god. But what happens next is pivotal: they are not alone in the fire—a fourth figure appears with them, described as looking like “a son of the gods.” Many believe this was a pre-incarnate appearance of Christ.
Symbolically, the fiery furnace represents a season of intense trial, purification, and testing for believers. It’s not punishment—it’s preparation. God doesn’t waste fire. It’s a refining fire (Malachi 3:2-3), not a consuming one (Isaiah 43:2).
The fiery furnace is not just a trial—it’s a special invitation. It’s the place where God stops being an idea or simply a presence in your life–He becomes your everything. It’s where you become on fire for Jesus.
It’s in the furnace that God reveals who He is, not just what He can do. This is the difference between the Israelites and Moses. The Israelites knew God for what He did for them—He parted the Red Sea, sent manna from heaven, and delivered them from slavery. But Moses knew God for who He was. Psalm 103:7 says, “He made known His ways to Moses, His deeds to the people of Israel.” The furnace is where you move from witnessing His deeds to understanding His ways.
The fiery furnace is where the knowledge of God becomes personal. Where the stories you’ve heard and the scriptures you’ve quoted are tested—and if you commit to the process, they become real. Alive. True. Not just for others, but for you.
And here’s the deeper truth: The fiery furnace is God wanting more of you.
He doesn’t just want your worship on Sundays or your trust when things are good—He wants your whole heart. Your full surrender. Your complete dependency. The fire reveals all the parts of you that you’ve held back—whether out of fear, pride, or self-protection—and in His mercy, God uses the furnace to call you into deeper intimacy.
It’s the place where:
- Your identity is stripped of false labels and rebuilt on truth.
- Your priorities are tested and realigned.
- Your faith moves from conditional to unshakable.
- The Word becomes your daily bread, not just a Sunday sermon.
- Your prayers shift from “deliver me” to “transform me.”
The furnace is not a sign of God’s absence—it’s the evidence of His pursuit. He’s not trying to destroy you. He’s drawing you closer. And in doing so, He removes everything standing in the way of full communion with Him.
Just like He did with Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, God enters the furnace with you (Daniel 3:25). You may go in bound, but you’ll come out free, refined, and walking in a level of trust and closeness with God that could only be forged in the fire.
You’re Being Led Into The Fiery Furnace
The first time God led me into the fiery furnace, it became clear that what I wanted to do with my life—what I believed He had placed on my heart—would require more than surface-level faith. It required me to truly know God and understand His ways. I tried to bypass that deeper process by seeking help from a pastor instead of pressing into God myself. When that didn’t work out, I tapped out. I wasn’t ready.
Five years later, God made it unmistakably clear: what I was asking Him for was only possible through the fire. I couldn’t skip the process. I had to walk through it—with Him.
The word I keep coming back to is clear. Maybe it’s clearer in hindsight, but even then, I knew Jesus was knocking on the door of my heart, asking for more of me. He wasn’t after part of my life—He wanted all of it.
Now, when you frame it like that—more of God, more of Jesus, more depth and truth and freedom—it sounds unthinkable that any believer would resist. But the truth is, the process involves full surrender, complete submission, and deep healing. It will confront your identity, your wounds, your pride, and your comfort zones. It’s painful. It’s humbling. It’s challenging. And that’s why so many hesitate or pull back.
You begin to know you’re being led into the furnace when things stop working the way they used to. You sense the shift. There’s a holy unrest. A divine disruption. God begins pursuing you more deeply—and nothing feels the same.
You can ignore it. You can resist it.
Or you can respond—and walk into the fire with Him.
Below is a greater list of signs that make it clear God is pursuing you.
Comfort Is Stripped Away
Suddenly, the life you built starts unraveling. You may lose a job—not for lack of effort, skill, or work ethic—but because God is confronting the foundation of your identity. He’s revealing where you’ve tied your worth to your work, your security to your salary, or your confidence to your accomplishments.
This stripping away is not cruelty—it’s mercy. God is removing false comforts so He can become your true refuge. You’re forced to confront not just your circumstances, but your beliefs about God, about yourself, and what you’ve depended on to feel safe.
God Seems Silent, Yet You’re Being Called to Deeper Trust
The prayers feel unanswered. Heaven feels quiet. You can’t discern what God is doing, and your usual ways of hearing Him aren’t working.
But deep down, there’s a holy pull—a call to trust Him without clarity. To obey without a detailed roadmap.
This silence isn’t rejection—it’s the classroom of faith. God is teaching you to walk by faith and not by sight (2 Corinthians 5:7). You’re learning to anchor your trust in His nature, not in His immediate answers.
What Used to Work Stops Working
Strategies that once opened doors now lead to dead ends. Spiritual habits that once brought breakthrough now feel dry. You may find yourself working harder than ever, with less fruit.
This isn’t failure. It’s a holy interruption. God is dismantling your self-sufficiency.
He’s doing a new thing—and that means the old things no longer serve your growth.
Isaiah 43:18–19 says: “Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing!”
But the new thing often begins with the disruption of the old.
You Feel Exposed or Tested in Specific Areas
God begins shining a spotlight on hidden wounds, character issues, or habits you thought you could ignore. Triggers intensify. Relationships stretch. Insecurities come to the surface.
This exposure is not shame—it’s sanctification. It’s God inviting you to see what He sees, so He can heal what He reveals. The fire brings the impurities to the surface so they can be burned off (Malachi 3:2–3).
There Is Pruning
God starts cutting away relationships, roles, or resources that once felt essential. You may lose favor in certain places, be misunderstood, or watch dreams you once cherished dissolve.
This is John 15 pruning: “Every branch that bears fruit, He prunes, that it may bear more fruit.”
Pruning is painful—but it’s purposeful.
God is not taking things away to hurt you; He’s making room for what’s truly from Him.
You’re Being Invited to Total Surrender
At some point, the pressure and confusion give way to a deeper invitation: Lay it all down. Not just what’s broken—but even what still seems good. God is asking for everything. Not out of harshness, but love.
He’s calling you to the kind of surrender that says, “Even if I don’t understand… I trust You. Even if I lose it all… You are enough.”
It’s in that surrender that you discover the depth of His faithfulness, the strength of His Spirit, and the security of a life built fully on Him.
The fire God leads you into is not the same as the destruction the enemy brings.
So let me make this crystal clear: The fire God leads you into is not the same as the destruction the enemy brings.
Sickness, disease, suffering, and poverty are not from God. Jesus came to redeem us from the curse of the law (Galatians 3:13), and that includes everything tied to death, destruction, and despair. Yes, God can use everything for your good (Romans 8:28), but He is not the author of harm. He is the Redeemer, not the destroyer.
This is one of the most powerful clarifications the fiery furnace brings:
You learn to distinguish between:
- Revelation and accusation
- Conviction and condemnation
- God’s pruning and the enemy’s attacks
In the fire, your discernment sharpens. Your understanding deepens. And the enemy’s confusion no longer holds power over you.
God refines. The enemy accuses.
God purifies. The enemy perverts.
God draws you closer. The enemy tries to drive you away.
Don’t confuse the two. And don’t let anyone convince you that God uses the tools of the enemy to teach His children.
The furnace will teach you that God’s ways are higher, better, and always rooted in love.
What to Expect In The Fiery Furnace
Your time in the furnace will be personal, intentional, and designed by God Himself—crafted to reach the end of you so that He can establish more of Him.
While everyone’s journey through the fire is different, the purpose is the same: full surrender, full transformation, full alignment with who you are in Christ. God is not after behavior modification—He’s after heart transformation.
There are similarities across the board. Every fiery furnace experience will expose what needs to go and cultivate what needs to grow. But remember this: God is a Master Surgeon of the heart. He knows exactly what to bring to the surface in you, what to touch, what to prune, what to heal, and what to rebuild—so He can bring about the outcome He desires.
What God will point out and have you do will be to change, refine, and transform WHO you are. The fiery furnace has to do with our calling and purpose in that it’s designed to turn us into who we need to be to carry out our calling and purpose.
Part of that preparation is leading you into a deeper understanding of His Kingdom—and that requires letting go of the ways of the world.
You need to know this: life may start to look upside down, but that’s not chaos—it’s clarity. God is breaking you free from patterns, systems, and mindsets that don’t belong to the Kingdom. He’s flipping the script the world gave you, because the ways of the Kingdom are not the ways of the world (Isaiah 55:8–9). What once made sense won’t make sense anymore. What once satisfied won’t satisfy. He’s teaching you how to live from a new reality—His.
Don’t Bother Asking God to Change Your Circumstances
This is one of the major mindset shifts that has to happen in the furnace: Stop looking for God to simply change your circumstances. Like the plot of a great story, your circumstances are the setup—but they’re not the point. They exist to reveal who you are now and who God is calling you to become.
If you keep focusing on getting out of the fire instead of through it, you’ll miss the very transformation God wants to bring.
This is also how you shut the enemy down.
Because the enemy will use your circumstances as a megaphone of accusation:
- “This is your fault.”
- “God must be punishing you.”
- “You’re not good enough.”
- “You missed your chance.”
Lies. Every one of them.
But when you realize that God is not using your circumstances to shame you, but to shape you, the enemy’s voice loses its power.
Here is an overview of what the furnace is meant to do:
Burn off what doesn’t belong
“…only the unshakable things will remain.” (Hebrews 12:27–29) Pride, ego, greed, self-reliance, independence, and people-pleasing—God allows the fire to confront every stronghold that keeps you from walking in full freedom.
Reveal what can’t be shaken
You begin to see what’s eternal and immovable—your identity in Christ, your calling, and the truth of God’s faithfulness.
Transform your understanding of who He is and who you are in Him
You no longer see God as just your provider or rescuer—but as your everything. And you stop striving to prove your worth and start living from the reality that you’re already chosen, loved, and empowered.
Produce perseverance, character, and hope
“Suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope.” (Romans 5:3–5) These aren’t just traits—they’re the fruit of someone who’s been through the fire and learned to walk with God. And yes, this is intense based on where you’re starting from.
Remove idols you didn’t know you had
Whether it’s approval, control, comfort, money, status, or even ministry success—God lovingly exposes every place you’ve placed your trust other than Him, so He can become your one true source.
Teach total dependency on His Spirit and His Word
You stop leaning on your understanding and abilities, and start depending completely on His voice, His leading, and His truth—in all things.
Intensify your prayer life
The fire drives you to your knees—not in defeat, but in pursuit. You move from casual, surface-level prayers to fervent, intimate, faith-filled intercession. You begin to pray not just to God, but with Him.
Change the way you speak
The furnace teaches you to guard your tongue and align your words with God’s Word.
You stop speaking from fear, frustration, or defeat—and start declaring what is not as though it is (Romans 4:17), speaking life, hope, and truth in agreement with heaven.
Make God’s Word your first and final authority
No more wavering between feelings, opinions, and culture. In the furnace, the Word becomes the standard. You stop treating Scripture as optional and start standing on it as unshakable truth. What God says becomes the first place you go for direction—and the last word on every matter.
Many Enemy Attacks
As you can probably imagine, the enemy isn’t going to sit back and watch you grow in the knowledge of God, become more like Jesus, and step fully into your calling without resistance. Attacks are inevitable. In fact, they often intensify the moment you commit to the refining process.
The fiery furnace isn’t just a place of transformation—it’s also a battlefield. The enemy will try to confuse, accuse, discourage, and distract you. It’s worth mentioning where enemy attacks point to your wounds, hurts, pain, unforgiveness, and weaknesses. It’s critical to learn his tactics.
Building our defenses against him includes healing, addressing, and resolving what makes us targets for him. Bring the attacks and the areas the enemy is targeting to God. And learn to go on the offense through prayer, the Word, and unwavering faith.
Being in the fire will go a long way to train you further in spiritual warfare.
How To Go Through The Fiery Furnace
Commit To Studying His Word
More than likely, God has already cleared your schedule. Things you used to be busy with may have been removed—not as a punishment, but as an invitation to immerse yourself in His Word.
Start your study with the foundations of faith. Focus on learning:
- Who God is – His nature, character, and promises.
- Who Jesus is – Not just Savior, but Shepherd, Lord, and King.
- Who the Holy Spirit is – Your guide, comforter, and source of power for living.
Let Scripture become your foundation and filter. Don’t just read it—let it read you.
But also know that being in the Word doesn’t only mean reading the Bible in isolation.
God speaks and teaches through others, and in the furnace, He often leads you to books, sermons, devotionals, and teachings that are biblically grounded and Spirit-led. These resources can help illuminate Scripture and offer wisdom, perspective, and encouragement for your journey.
There are sermons that unlocked things in my heart, and books that helped me understand spiritual truths in a way I hadn’t before. Be open to receiving teaching through trusted, biblically sound voices.
Feed yourself continuously—especially in the area God is highlighting. If He’s working on your trust, study Scriptures and teachings on trust. If He’s confronting fear, feed on truth that reveals His faithfulness. Let Him guide your study and speak through every avenue He chooses.
Worship Continuously
Worship is not just something you do when you feel good—it’s a weapon, a lifeline, and an act of war in the furnace. When everything around you is shaking, worship anchors you in who God is.
I spent a lot of time coming undone and crying during worship. I would sing as my heart was breaking, and many times, I didn’t know if I meant the words I was singing, but I knew they were true. Worship became even more critical when I didn’t feel like it. It was my declaration: my choice is God, no matter how hard this gets. I’ll admit it—sometimes, I praised God just to spite the enemy. I knew with all my heart the goodness of God and was determined to destroy all strongholds and influences of the enemy.
It’s through worship that I began letting go of much of the pain that the enemy was trying to consume me with. I experienced in the deepest of sorrows the relief, the renewing, and the joy that worship provides.
In the fiery furnace, worship reminds you that:
- God is still good, even when life is hard.
- God is still worthy, even when answers haven’t come.
- God’s presence is greater than any storm, fire, or trial.
Worship lifts your eyes off the circumstances and places them back on the One who holds you through them. It shifts your posture from despair to hope, from fear to trust, from striving to surrender.
Make worship part of your daily rhythm. Let the songs you choose fill the atmosphere with truth and faith. Worship and declare the victory that’s already been won.
Pray The Dangerous Prayers
These are not surface-level requests. These are the transform-me-from-the-inside-out prayers that open the door to real change. Pray them sincerely and consistently:
“Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts!
And see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.”
— Psalm 139:23–24
“I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me.” — Galatians 2:20
“Make me to know your ways, O LORD; teach me your paths. Lead me in your truth and teach me, for you are the God of my salvation.” — Psalm 25:4–5
These prayers position you for the transformation God desires.
Take Communion Daily (Often)
There is power in remembering what Jesus did for you—not just occasionally, but daily.
Communion isn’t just a ritual; it’s a spiritual recalibration. It anchors your heart in the finished work of the cross and His resurrection, and reminds you that you’re not going through the fire alone.
I love taking communion and taking the time to remember, give thanks, express my complete gratitude, and submit to my Lord and Savior. It wasn’t like that before; it’s my time in the furnace that made it that way.
Embrace Journaling
The fiery furnace is not just a season of outward change—it’s a season of deep inner work. Journaling becomes a powerful tool in this process. It creates space for introspection, self-reflection, and spiritual dialogue with God.
The furnace brings up deep questions, raw emotions, and surprising revelations. Journaling creates space to:
- Process what you’re feeling
- Reflect on what God is highlighting in your life
- Capture what He is saying to you
- Record your prayers, breakthroughs, and spiritual insights
- Track patterns of growth, correction, and encouragement
You may not see the full picture while you’re in the fire, but your journal becomes a testimony. Later, you’ll be able to look back and see how God was speaking, guiding, and shaping you all along.
Ask yourself regularly:
- What is God saying to me today?
- What is He asking of me?
- What am I resisting?
- What am I learning about myself? About Him?
This is not about having perfect words—it’s about having an open heart. Your journal can become a sacred space where God meets you in your questions and forms you in your quiet moments.
Fellowship. Fellowship. Fellowship.
Isolation is the enemy’s playground. Don’t go through the furnace or any part of your walk of faith alone.
Even if you’re misunderstood by some, ask God to connect you with at least one or two people who are walking with Him and can walk with you.
- Join a small group.
- Join a Bible group.
- Join a prayer group.
- Reach out for spiritual mentorship.
- Be vulnerable with other believers.
Fellowship sharpens you, strengthens you, and reminds you that you’re not the only one walking through the fire. Iron sharpens iron. Community cultivates courage.
The Fiery Furnace Is For Those Called To It
It’s normal—after reading all of this—to want to say, “Ann, what you’ve described sounds like the everyday Christian walk. Renewing our minds. Trusting God. Studying His Word. Praying dangerous prayers. Isn’t that just what it means to follow Jesus?”
And I would say—yes, absolutely. But when God calls someone into the fiery furnace, He is expediting the process. He is doing a deep work, in a short window, to prepare you for your specific purpose.
This is not a season you choose, although it can be one you pay for as you want to set your heart on fire. But primarily, it’s a calling you respond to. You don’t decide to walk into the furnace—God leads you into it. It’s similar to not starting a church or going into ministry unless we’re called to it by God.
People have told me, “That doesn’t make sense. What if everyone did that?” God wasn’t asking everyone to do what He asked me to do; He asked me to do it because it’s what I needed. So, even when conversing with someone else in a fiery furnace, understand there will be familiarities and differences. I would never question your experience based on mine.
The Apostle Paul spoke of this kind of divine acceleration. After his conversion, he didn’t run to Jerusalem to be taught by the apostles. Instead, he withdrew to Arabia, where he was taught directly by Jesus Christ (Galatians 1:11–18). For three years, he was forged in isolation, shaped in revelation, and refined for the call that was on his life.
So maybe you know God’s call on your life. Maybe you don’t—yet. But hear this: there is a call. There is a purpose. We are all called to a purpose. And God needs you to become who He created you to be in order to carry it out.
A Final Word
This post isn’t a formula. It’s not an exhaustive breakdown of what the furnace looks like for every person. It’s a starting point—a framework to help you discern what may be happening in your life and how to respond if God is indeed calling you into the fire.
If this resonates with your spirit, I encourage you to take it to God in prayer. Ask Him,
“Lord, is this what You’re doing in me? Are You calling me deeper? Are You preparing me through fire?”
And if the answer is yes—then trust that you’re not alone in it.
He is with you in the fire. He is for you. God keeps His promised. God finishes what He starts. God is faithful.
I invite you to reach out. I’d be happy to pray for you and provide support and encouragement.