Whittled Away

In ancient times, coins were made much differently than they are today.  Gold or silver would be melted and poured into a small mold, then a die would be pressed on to it containing the image of either a ruler or a god.  Coins minted in this fashion were understandably irregular with soft, uneven edges.  This fact was not unnoticed by the populace.

Soon thereafter people began taking a sharp knife and trimming away some of the outer edge.  They would then keep these shavings of the precious metal in a special place.  Slowly, as they trimmed enough coins, they managed to obtain enough metal shavings to melt and form new coins.  Talk about making the most of your money!  Of course, as people kept trimming the coins, they got smaller and smaller.  This practice became so common that the city of Athens passed over 80 laws against coin-trimming, meaning that the practice had become very common and widespread.

In I Corinthians 9:27 the Apostle Paul writes the following.  "I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize."  The word that Paul uses for 'disqualified' here is the Greek word adokimos which is the term that was used of a coin that had been whittled down so much that it was no longer accepted by merchants.  That coin would now have to be melted and re-minted.

This is what can happen to us when we don't pay attention to our spiritual health.  Little by little it can be whittled away through either neglect or poor choices until finally there is not much substance left.  We come to the point where we won't win the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.  That is always our loss.

Lord, help me to pay attention to the little details of my life, to listen carefully to Your Spirit as He speaks to me.  Help me to be faithful to You and to run the race with perseverance and integrity.  In Jesus' name, Amen.