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Along Life’s Way
Tempering: Its Lesson
By Lois E. Wilson
The smithy takes the billet of metal and heats it in the forge until it
is glowing red-hot. He quickly puts it on the anvil and begins to shape
it by repeated strikes with a hammer. He at times cools the bar by
quenching it in oil to harden it. This sequence of heating, hammering,
and quenching is repeated over and over during the process of shaping
the object the smithy is creating.
Forging requires that metal gets exposed to the heat of the fire, the
blows and strikes of the hammer, the cooling of the quench. This
treatment tempers the object so that it becomes hardened to face what
it may encounter when used—be it a knife, sword, or decorative
container. The lesson from this is expressed in my short verse:
When temptation does its tantalizing
Or you find your temperature rising,
A fit of temper is traumatizing.
Slow the tempo; do some analyzing—
Temperance wins you’ll be realizing.
Mark Twain said, “There are several good protections against
temptations, but the surest is cowardice.” There are other choices.
Remember the advice that when you are angry, “count to ten” before
taking any overt actions. To do so gives you time to consider
consequences. You are tempering your response, if any.
When one is confronted with temptation, a pause is prudent. Then you
can contemplate whether to yield to it or choose the path of
temperance. If you follow the lesson of tempering, you strengthen
yourself and your responses so that they are measured and appropriate
to the situation.
The Bible in 2 Peter1:2 and 6 (AV) states: “Grace and peace be
multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus, our
Lord…And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance, patience; and to
patience godliness.”
The smithy uses his skill in tempering to shape and harden metal. You
can develop your skills in tempering as you apply them to your life.
You will be developing your mettle. If you are not familiar with the
meaning of “mettle,” it is defined as a person’s ability to cope well
with difficulties or to face a demanding situation in a spirited and
resilient way.
You are the smithy of your own life—hardening and improving your
mettle. Forge ahead! With God’s guidance, forge the best version of
yourself. Happy New Year!
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