"Out with the Old, In with the New"

   This seems to be the theme for our time back in Taiwan.  Not just physically - having to have cleaned the house from mold, inside and out, replacing furniture with the ones we could not save, eating much healthier, and exercising, not to mention all the new things and clothes we got from having been in the states.  Though outwardly, we are embracing the new things, inwardly God is doing a makeover as well.
So the verses that come into mind are, 
^"These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. -1 Peter 1:7

and John 15:1,2 “I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. ² He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful."

   Being "pruned" or in the "fire" are not fun times, but we see that our Father in heaven is doing what is best for our hearts.  Thanks to His Word, many prayers, books like "Crazy Love" (Francis Chan) and "When Sinners Say I Do" (Dave Harvey) it's been helping us through this journey.