January 21. How Many Rubs on a Wet Stone Are Required to Sharpen a Blade and You?

The question of the day is, “Who sharpens you?" As a leader, who helped you to become better last week, last month, in the last year? We have a choice to make today. Will we share more time with them next week, next month, next quarter?

As a leader, you might have a role to do that for your teams that you lead. As an effective leader, you sharpen your team. But as leader, it is appropriate to question who sharpens you. The natural world will wear on us and allow us to become dull over time. It takes an intervention, a change, to stay sharp.

When an instrument gets dull the effectiveness of the cut becomes degraded. I use a chainsaw regularly. I can clear a lot of material with a sharp blade and the saw handles with ease. When I allow the saw to get dull over time or hit the blade against a hard object like a nail or rock the ease of handling vanishes.

The saw grinds instead of cuts. The friction of the chain is now what is doing the damage to the tree and it slows down. The bar gets hot and the work drags on to an annoying slow pace.

Abraham Lincoln is known to have said, “Give me six hours to cut down a tree and I’ll spend the first four sharpening the axe.” Where do you need to be sharpened? Who can help to sharpen you? What tools might you use? There is no time like the present to start the process.

When the leader gets sharpened, the organization and team will be sharper as well. Where might you be sharpened in the next seven days?

We can often find moments of inspiration in our faith walk when we allow ourselves to spend time with those that God has influenced their lives. The little and the large distractions of life can keep us from those moments. They can dull our edge and reduce our ability to be focused on God.

Our edge needs to be sharp. We want as little distraction as possible when it comes to God. Philippians 4:8 helps us to think about this concept. “And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable.

Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.” That applies to the people in our lives as well. Whoever is true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable- those that are praiseworthy- think about such things, spend time with them.

Just as our sins may dull us, we live in grace and forgiveness which may sharpen us to be in a stronger relationship with our Lord. Let us break out our wet stone or our sharpening file and allow Christ to sharpen us.

Perhaps we can put our differences aside and come together to sharpen each other as iron sharpens iron. What is the first thing that you can do to allow Christ to sharpen you in the next seven days?

Let us pray, Heavenly Father, life on this earth can dull us. It can put chips in our blade and keep us out of balance. Rub us together as you will, as we want to be sharp and in relationship with you. Join us today as we think of and thank those that help us to be sharp.

Keep those near to us if they carry your wet stone and can sharpen us. Remind us of our experiences to draw nearer to you in the present and the future. Make the dulling moments of the past be a thing of the past as you sharpen us today. In Jesus’ name, we pray. Amen,