Resting on the Anvil
True it is - hammers can pound things into other things and ensure other things are pounded in such a way that they no longer represent their former form. It also shapes that which it hits. It is that shaping process that God may be after in our lives, not just the work of penetrating our souls, but of really changing them. God's word is a tool used to "shape" us - it is designed to "adapt" us to the character traits that most closely resemble those of Christ's. I daresay, these are the character traits we most often lack apart from a little 'shaping' on his part! “Is not my word like fire,” declares the LORD, “and like a hammer that breaks a rock in pieces?" (Jeremiah 23:29) As the hammer is wielded, the shaping process begins. As the object being shaped is placed on top of that which acts as a backdrop to all the shaping process, the hammer comes down on the object upon which it rests, conforming it to the image of that which it rests up...