Amazon Cessa's Place Forged in the Refiner's Fire Category:  Inspirational Publisher: Salima Enterprises, LLC ISBN-10:  1932898557 Type: Non-Fiction Pages: 200 Copyright: February 2006 ISBN-13: 9781932898552 A collection of true stories about people from all walks of life of trial, tragedy and sorrow and how they triumphed, drawing closer to the Lord in the process. Why do bad things happen? Is there a purpose when we face a bad trial? As mortals, we can be compared to ore, such as gold and silver. Ore that is unrefined is generally impure and undesirable. Only ore that is crushed -- and then refined by fire -- becomes beautiful, pure, precious and valuable. This book was written to help you see the results of the Ultimate Refiner, the Lord, in your own life. Excerpt "Have courage for the great sorrows of life and patience for the small ones; and when you have laboriously accomplished your daily task, go to sleep in peace. God is awake." Victor Hugo My son, Joshua, has gone to war. I remember the bittersweet parting that seems just yesterday, as we sent him on his mission to Minnesota. The Spirit was so strong. I knew I was sending my boy into the Lord’s care. When the Stake President set him apart as a missionary, he blessed him always to be warm enough. I had expressed my concern that he’d freeze, but it turned out he was in more danger from the Lutefisk! From recipes brought by their Scandinavian ancestors, the loving people of Minnesota served the Elders the dried cod that is re-hydrated in lye water, then spiced. The only way I know to explain the taste is to recount an old Norwegian-American saying: “It is said that half the Norwegians who immigrated to America came in order to escape the hated lutefisk, and the other half came to spread the tale of Lutefisk's wonderfulness.” I missed Joshua terribly but rejoiced that he was serving the Lord. I eagerly awaited his letters and he usually ended each one by saying how much he loved being a missionary. He wrote of his gratefulness that I had taught him the scriptures, and how he loved me. I knew he had developed into a fine, young man. Later, one bright, sunny day we posed for pictures on the steps of the Salt Lake Temple where he had just married his sweetheart. My heart was so full of pride for this young man who had lived worthily and found such a wonderful girl. Then the military immediately stationed Joshua and his wife across the country. He was given training that was sometimes so top secret he couldn’t even tell us about it. Then Joshua’s first baby was born, and he brought his new family to see us. We rejoiced in our new grandson, took lots of pictures and struggled to hold back the tears as Joshua named and blessed his baby in our ward. I knew at the airport that it would be the last time I would see my son for a long time. I took his face in my hands and told him I loved him. I hugged him and whispered, “God be with you till we meet again.” It was so hard to let him go, knowing that in just a few weeks he would be deployed overseas to serve for a year or longer. My heart aches for his little family who must be separated during these special bonding times. He won’t hear his son’s first words or watch him take his first steps. His son won’t know his daddy for a long while. Joshua’s wife must be a single parent and care for her newborn without her husband near to support her. My greatest concern is Joshua’s safety in the war zone. I tend to worry and sometimes this thought keeps me up at night, and I offer many prayers pleading for my son’s safety. How can I bear for him to be in the dangers of battle? The thought of possible harm coming to him terrifies me. I cringe when I watch the news of casualties and wounded. I know these are children, spouses and loved ones of people here at home. My prayers go out to them and their families. Besides safety for Joshua, I ask for comfort and peace for my heart. I know that we are not meant to survive mortality forever and that someday the Lord will call each of us home. I just hope that I have more time with my son. I hope Joshua has time to enjoy the family he is starting, to feel their love and create those special moments which make eternal memories. As if in answer to my plea for comfort, my thoughts began to turn forcefully to my great-uncle Howard, whom I have never seen, as he died before I was born. I dug out an old trunk that contained my grandmother’s account, written about her brother Howard many years ago. I looked at a picture of a young Howard. I wondered what he was like. He’s shown standing on a bridge in the South, next to a girl. His eyes are bright and full of life. He looks a lot like my grandmother. There is a goodness in his countenance that makes me wish to know him. He’s very much like my Joshua, a good young man. Seaman, First Class, Howard P. Smith was assigned to protect a merchant marine ship on the Murmansk run in World War Two. The Murmansk run was a route that took supplies from the U.S.A. through the North Atlantic Ocean, to Russia. German U-boats would try to destroy these ships as they sailed. Howard’s ship was the S.S. Richard Bland. The ship had been torpedoed before, but had been patched up and was able to carry on. What happened next my grandmother Lorena had written and given to me. She poured her heart out onto the pages. I read the words with great interest: I found myself one night in a dream, yet it was too real to be an ordinary dream. I was standing on the catwalk of a large ship. It was dark, so dark and cold with a wind blowing. My only wrap was a blanket. I clutched it tight around me. The area was suddenly lit with bursting gunfire from guns below me and from guns aimed at the ship I was on. In the partial light I could see Howard at a gun below, busily adjusting it and firing at other ships. These ships were illuminated only by the flare of the burst aimed at them. I watched, scared, alternately cold from the wind and hot from the heat of the bursting bombs. Suddenly, below and to the right I saw a torpedo speeding through the water toward the ship. It was about to hit the point where Howard stood. I called out to him screaming his name and pointing to the torpedo. He looked at it, turned quickly toward me and while smiling, he said, “Lorena, do not worry, it is all right.” Then I awoke in my bed at home, still calling out, still freezing and feeling the heat of the bomb’s bursts. I never told anyone, except my husband who was awakened by my cries. The next morning I wrote to an office of the Navy where I had been told I could get information about servicemen. They wrote back right away and said, “We cannot for safety’s sake tell you exactly where the ships go. But we can say that Howard P. Smith is assigned to a convoy in the South of Great Britain.” I knew Howard was in England from time to time, because some of his letters were postmarked from there. A month or so later the telegram came that he was missing in action. My heart already knew what had happened, and it was confirmed when I heard Gabriel Heater broadcasting the war news a few days later. He described a battle in the North Sea. The back quarter of a ship had been torpedoed with the loss of several sailors. Part of the ship had managed to remain afloat and had been towed to shore. The name of the ship was the S.S. Richard Bland, the ship I knew Howard was on. I know I was there in spirit. I’m certain I will be with him again. God cares for His own, and I’m sure Howard is there waiting for us. I folded my grandmother’s account and knew the deep love she must have had for her departed brother. Tears came to my eyes as I imagined her dealing with the news of his death. She didn’t have the benefit of knowing the Gospel plan, but she believed in the Savior. I’m glad that in all her despair she had a spot of serenity. Her brother had shown her he was all right, even though he was no longer in mortality. Howard died one week before his 26th birthday, serving our country in the North Sea by England. He was posthumously awarded the Purple Heart. I had peace in knowing that my grandmother was given reassurance and understanding the night her brother died. What a comfort that must have been for her to cling to! After reading Grandma’s account, my thoughts were strongly directed to my son. Into my mind came the memory of Joshua in middle school. One of his younger brothers was being picked on at elementary school by a bully. Without being told to, Joshua had gone to school with his little brother one morning, found the bully, put his hand on the bully’s shoulder and kindly, gently, told him that he was the big brother of the boy he had been tormenting. Joshua is very tall and in middle school was near to six feet. To a third grader he must have looked enormous. He simply told the bully that he wouldn’t be picking on his little brother anymore, would he? The boy looked all the way up into Joshua’s face and nodded with some fear and trepidation. The bully left my younger son alone after that. I had forgotten this memory, and it was brought to my mind for a purpose. I felt so proud of a young Joshua who took initiative and peacefully resolved a situation that had threatened his brother. Then my mind was turned to the war in Heaven in our pre-mortal state. I re-read the book of Revelations describing the scene where one of our brothers rose up against our Father and our Savior. Because Lucifer sought to destroy our agency, there was a war among us, the pre-existent spirits. He also convinced a third of our siblings to follow him in open rebellion, and he sought the throne of Heavenly Father. That war continues today here on Earth. The understanding came powerfully to me that Howard and Joshua were the types of spirits that would not have stood by and let Lucifer threaten those they loved. When Lucifer and his supporters had to be fought and driven from Heaven, I know that Howard and Joshua were amongst those who did not hesitate to battle for the cause of righteousness and to protect those they loved. This truth was strongly impressed upon me. Then my mind was directed back to Joshua’s childhood. Joshua took great joy in climbing to the top of the 25 foot pine tree in our back yard. Sometimes he would slide down the branches and scare me endlessly. He went rock climbing with the Young Men’s group and was able to make it to the top of the rocks long after the others had given up. We live in the foothills of the Wasatch Mountains. He frequently walked to the end of our street and climbed up to the top of the mountain without food or water. My mothering instinct called out for sunscreen, a hat, and water, but it was no big deal to him. He just loved hiking. Later during military training, he completed the Ruck March, a 12 mile mountain hike with full pack, while others struggled. It was a walk scheduled to take three hours and he ran it in little over one hour. His superior physical performance caught his leaders’ attention, and they begged him to join the Special Forces, but Joshua wanted to stay with his current military occupation. It was something he had dreamed of since childhood. Then I realized that Joshua had been adventurous in his youth, and this had built his body and spirit to a point where he could perform and endure great physical hardships. It was impressed upon me that Joshua had always been a courageous, adventurous and protecting spirit, even before his birth. I was an overprotective mother and had always tried to keep him off the roof and out of the trees, but I had not understood his true nature. Joshua called me during training and, when I expressed my fear at his deployment, he told me he and his group were very good at what they did. He said he would be sad to leave his family, but he was actually looking forward to getting “over there” and being able to help people. He is blessed that his military occupation is a “helping” role. Joshua’s heart is always centered on serving others. He finds the good he can do in any situation. I’m still concerned for Joshua’s safety. I leave him in the Lord’s hands and accept His will. I have comfort now in knowing Joshua’s true spirit and mission as both a righteous Heavenly defender and an earthly protector. I know that Joshua would not sit by and watch as his loved ones were threatened. He would never hesitate to give his life if called to do so in defense of his family, friends and Country, just as his great-grand uncle Howard did. I pray that the Lord keeps all our loved ones in military service safe, and I ask that His will be done. I’m thankful to those who made the ultimate sacrifice for us in all our country’s wars to protect their loved ones and to keep our nation free. During my trial of worrying for my son’s safety, I’ve been reminded that life extends both beyond and before our earth-life. I’ve learned that we were all unique spirits and each is sent here with a specific mission to fulfill. My Grandma’s account taught me that though we will face pain, we will, also, have an eternal reunion and the joy of being together again. I’ve learned to trust the Lord and that He has prepared his children for the missions they are to perform. My son is qualified for the mortal life God wants him to live. “The pre-existent life was thus a period…of probation, progression, and schooling. The spirit hosts were taught and given experiences…some so exercised their agency and so conformed to law as to become ‘noble and great’; these were foreordained before their mortal births to perform great missions for the Lord in this life.”4 Bruce R. McConkie I’ve also learned to trust in the promise of families forever, and that one day I will be able to meet Uncle Howard and reunite with my family. There, we won’t be burdened with the wars and sorrows of mortality, but will rejoice in love and eternal peace. When I think of Grandma and her brother, I recall the words of Joseph Smith, Jr.: “All your losses will be made up to you in the resurrection, provided you continue faithful. By the vision of the Almighty I have seen it.”5 When I think of my precious son, and my trial of worry for his safety, I recall the comfort and peace the Lord gave me by teaching me about my son’s eternal nature and mission. I’m stronger now and have more understanding of the eternal perspective. I also know my son better. I love these words of Hugh B. Brown that show no matter what sorrows we have on earth, joy awaits the righteous in heaven: “Night never had the last word. The dawn is always invincible.”6 Hugh B. Brown And so it is with us. When hope seems to be holding on by the merest thread, don’t give up because the dawn always comes. God will triumph and all our losses will be made up to us. Never forget to look to that dawn when we will smile and bask in God’s love. Glorious things await us as we are taken from the Refiner’s fire, by the Ultimate Refiner, our Lord.

We are strong enough to thrive.
This is a truly inspirational and uplifting book. Personal essays of people who have had serious challenges and/or trials in life, how they survived, and what they learned. I highly recommend this for anyone who is currently going through really hard times, or anyone who has survived them. You discover you are not alone in your struggles, and that the adage is true: "Anything that does not kill you makes you stronger."

Inspired words strengthen your spirit.
Reading about the trials that these people faced and how they did it with such strenghth and dignity inspires me to find courage to face my own struggles. Their unfailing trust in the Lord helps to build my faith to turn to him should I be faced with similar circumstances.