Quartz gold
The richest, most glamorous gold mines in the Old West possessed quartz with gold.
Quartz with gold was not rounded or water worn. It was very bright, irregular, high quality, and often twisted in form. Quartz with gold was found in massive underground gold mines rather than surface placer mines.
Quartz is a natural silica mineral most common in such deposits. To separate the quartz from the gold required construction of crushers or stamping machines. A 20 stamp mill produced a lot of noise.
It took crushing to release the wealth.
The same is true for us. The gold in our lives, the ability to accomplish great things for God, come from our strengths, our God-given talents. But they can be crusted with worthless attitudes, thoughts, and actions. In order for the good to surface, the bad must be eliminated.
“Throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us” (Hebrews 12:1).
Sometimes we can easily discard waste. Other times trials, testing, temptations, and persecutions intervene.
We cry out because it hurts. We’re miserable. But sooner or later the whining should stop as we ask, “Why am I going through this?”
The tough stuff of life is meant to produce the gold of …
1) perseverance, which leads to…
2) character, which leads to…
3) hope that does not disappoint us (Romans 5:3,4)
quartz gold in rock
Not many folks complained of the pounding, constant noise of a quartz gold stamp mill. Miners, shop owners, and mine owners alike knew that meant jobs and profit. They were making money.
And the tough measures we face are meant to remove useless quartz filler and produce the gold of eternal wealth.
Copyright©1994
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Have you ever seen rock or quartz mixed with gold? Do you own a sample? Where did it come from?
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