Sleeping with the Flames

“One of the ancient warriors said, ‘I cannot use in battle a sword that has not been ofttimes annealed (to anneal is to temper with fire); but give me a Damascus blade that has been so prepared, and I will cut through a coat of mail, or split a man from head to foot at a single stroke. It gets its temper and keenness of edge from having slept with the flames again and again.’"

Charles Haddon Spurgeon, in a sermon called The Sorrowful Man's Question.

Are you sleeping with the flames? Don't despise your sufferings. They will temper your character and put a keen edge on your heart for God.