As many of you probably know
by now my favorite writer is
Max Lucado...these wordws
are from his book On The
Anvil...hope they are
meaningful!
With a strong forearm, the
apron-clad blacksmith puts
his tongs into the fire,
grasps the heated metal, and
places it on the anvil. His
keen eye examines the
glowing piece. He sees what
the tool is now and
envisions what he wants it
to be...sharper, flatter,
wider, longer. With a clear
picture in his mind, he
begins to pound. His left
hand still clutching the hot
mass with the tongs, his
right hand slams the two
pound sledge hammer on the
moldable metal.
On the solid anvil, the
smoldering iron is remolded!
The blacksmith knows the
type of instrument he wants.
He knows the size, the
shape...he knows the
strength.
Whang! Whang! The
hammer slams. The shop rings
with noise. The air fills
with smoke and the soften
metal responds.
But the response doesn't
come easy, it doesn't come
without discomfort.. To melt
down the old and recast it
as new is a disrupting
process. Yet the metal
remains on the anvil,
allowing the toolmaker to
remove the scars, repair the
cracks, refill the woids,
and purge the impurities.
And with time, a change
occurs. What was dull
becomes sharpened, what was
crooked becomes straight,
what was weak becomes
strong, and what was useless
becomes valuable.
Then the blacksmith stops.
He ceases his pounding and
sets down his hammer. With a
strong left arm, he lifts
the tongs until the freshly
molded metal is at eye
level. In the still silence,
he examines the smoking
tool. the incandescent
impliment is rotated and
examined for any mars or
cracks. There are none!
Now the smith enters the
final stage of his task. He
plunges the smoldering
instrument into a nearby
bucket of water. With a hiss
and a rush of stream, the
metal immediately begins to
harden. The heat surrenders
to the onslaught of cool
water, and the pliable, soft
mineral becomes an unbending
useful tool.
"For a little while you
may have had to suffer grief
in all kinds of trials.
These have come so that your
faith...of greater worth
than gold, which perishes
even though refined by
fire...may be proved genuine
and may result in praise,
glory and honor when Jesus
Christ is revealed." (1
Peter 1:6-7)
