The Bible teaches us that our lives have value to God. He has given each of us gifts, talents and opportunities that contribute to the fulfillment of His plan for our lives…a plan that gives us joy, a sense of accomplishment, meaning and purpose. Sadly for many of us, we fall short of God’s best for our lives. We look back and wonder, “What happened? How did I get off course?” Perhaps there was some “dross” in our lives that needed to be removed. Read Proverbs 25:4

Take away the dross from the silver, and there shall come forth a vessel for the finer. (KJV)

Remove the dross from the silver, and a silversmith can produce a vessel; (NIV)

Take away the dross from the silver, and there shall come forth [the material for] a vessel for the silversmith [to work up]. (AMP)

Before silversmiths could fashion sheets of silver metal in to cups, jewelry and other things of value, they first had to purify the silver ore. Silver ore was a mixture of metallic silver and impurities that had to be heated in a furnace to high temperatures. The ore would melt and the impurities (dross) would rise to the top of the mixture. The impurities then could be removed from the molten silver. Sometimes this process was repeated several times to increase the purity of the silver. The dross had to be removed in order to get a product that the silversmith could use.

Dross is the scum from molten metal. It represents that which is inferior, impure, the things that keep what’s precious from being precious. If you feel that you have fallen short of what God has called you to do, could it be that there is “dross” in your life? Dross can take the following forms:

• Associates who are bad influences
• Selfishness
• Greed
• Out of control passions
• Gluttony
• Laziness
• Lack of focus
• Focusing on the wrong things
• Ignorance (not having the knowledge or understanding you need)
• Lack of wisdom
• Pride
• Insecurity

Can you think of more?

These and other things can keep you from being “fashioned” into the valuable thing that God has planned before you were born; from achieving the goals He has and the joy He desires for you.

What should you do about the dross? Your first steps should be the following:

• Pray
• Read
• Meditate
• Be obedient

Pray with humility asking God’s forgiveness of any known sin. Next, read His word and meditate on what you have read. As you meditate on His word, ask Him to speak to your heart concerning your next move. God has promised to give His children wisdom if they would just ask. Finally, be obedient to what He has instructed you to do. Don’t try to “figure God out” and expect to see the next ten steps ahead of you; just trust Him as you take each individual step.

Start today and make it a goal to lead a “dross-free” life and achieve the things God intended for you.