One day I uncovered this keepsake. The gray gritty block of rock is from my mission trip to the Dominican Republic. It was given to each team member as a reminder of the work that we did that week by our trip leader Mitch Hildebrant.
In the DR they don't have sandpaper, or convenient Western sanders. The don't have sophisticated carpentry tools at all. In fact we hauled water by a bucket and a heavy rope up to the second floor level where we mixed concrete by hand. Their tools are very rudimentary. We mixed the mortar with a rake, a shovel and a wheelbarrow. Since the walls were concrete too we had to smooth off the rough places with this sanding stone before we could primer and paint it. It was very rough, dirty work. We worked hard as a team and at the end of the day, there was a thin layer of fine dust that rested on our exposed skin and clothes.
There are some rough edges of my heart places where God has been digging into. Rough places of faith as He is making them stronger. Sometimes it feels like He is taking his sanding block and scraping against the grain in the walls of my heart to make them smooth. Kind of like scraping in an open wound that won't heal. It stings a little. It's somewhat gritty and dusty, this sanding process, but I know God is smoothing my heart's rough edges.
When using the sanding block in the DR, we would sand and then run our hands over the sanded parts to see if there were any remaining rough places. The next step was a beautiful coat of paint. God has his righteous right hand over me with the work He is doing. As a Master planner watching over his work, He is overseeing this refining process through to the end to bring His glorious reveal.
"I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us." Romans 8:18
What rough places is God smoothing in you?
1 comment:
Love this! ~ Mindy
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