Tag Archive for: refined

Sandpaper

Regularly, I enjoy watching “The Repair Shop” on BBC1.
Oftentimes, I fall asleep during the programme and have a wee power nap and sadly miss the action but feel revived!
Either way, I feel refreshed!
After all, it is a time for me to chill and relax a little.
I do however enjoy listening to the stories and watch the remarkable repairs of many broken or damaged objects brought back to life, through the incredible skills of the craftsmen and women.
Their eye for detail is exceptional.
Their toolkits are filled with the weirdest and most wonderful gizmo’s ever conceived.
Yet – the most frequent tool I see, is a simple piece of sandpaper.

Sandpaper…

Sandpaper comes in many grits: Coarse (40 to 60 grit), Medium (80 to 120 grit), Fine (150 to 180) and so it goes on to Very, Extra and Super Fine.
In the “Repair Shop” different grits of sandpaper are often used to smooth off the rough edges of many pieces of raw wood.
In a like manner, yesterday, as we bid farewell to another group of departing missionaries, I thought about how their many diverse mission experiences, were like different grits of sandpaper, used through their period of missionary service to smooth off their rough edges.
Neal A. Maxwell said “In life, the sandpaper of circumstances often smooths our crustiness and patiently polishes our rough edges. There is nothing pleasant about it, however. And the Lord will go to great lengths in order to teach us a particular lesson and to help us to overcome a particular weakness, especially if there is no other way.”
I have come to realise that trials are like a spiritual sandpaper that God allows into our lives – regularly.
How can our trials smooth us and prepare us for the challenges of life?