“As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.” -Proverbs 27:17

There is a show called Forged in Fire where blacksmiths compete to make different tools/weapons. It is always cool to see how they can make the things they make. They heat the metal, hammer it down and shape it into whatever they need. This is the idea behind the proverb that says iron sharpens iron. Just as blacksmiths can use metal to shape other metal into something new, we can do the same with each other, just without the hammer.

Our goal should be to help each other be the best we can be. But if you have never seen a blacksmith do their job, it is a lot of hard work. They must constantly shape the metal, make adjustments, and hammer it down until they only thing left is what is needed for the tool. And this is the same for us. In life we are going to need people on our lives that can hold us accountable, teach us right from wrong, and call us out when needed. Having those people who love and teach us, can help us become better and better throughout of life.

From the perspective of the bible, we need people in our lives that will hold us accountable as we seek to follow God. People that will call out sin in our lives and encourage us to faithfully follow God. We need people that model faith for us and show us what in means to live a life for Christ.

On the soccer field, we should be seeking to help one another make adjustments on the field. When we make mistakes or play out of position, we need our teammates to push us to practice more, play better, and help each other grow as a team. We need to hold each other accountable in the game of soccer so that we can trust one another and be the best team we can.

But a blacksmith doesn’t hammer the metal just to hammer it. He is intentional with every strike so that each adjustment makes the metal more like it needs to be. When we seek to “sharpen” one another we must also we be intentional in how we do so. We should not seek to tear each other down, but to help each other grow. Grow in their faith, grow in their skills, and grow in life to be the best person they can be. May we seek to sharpen each other as we live life together.

As always, if you have any question about your faith or how to have a relationship with Jesus, I would love to talk with you about it! -Coach Nick