Religion Today: Ode to the Machinist
Religion Today: Ode to the Machinist – By Richard Lewis
His name is Miklos. I can’t recall all the details of how I met him, but my friend Miklos turned out to be a master machinist. Our friendship has been a wonderful blessing. When you are working on older cars you will often need parts that are long out of production, and he was able to create those for me.
SEE OTHE RECENT DEVOTIONALS BY RICHARD LEWIS:
Religion Today: What good will it be for someone to gain the whole world
Religion Today: Saddles and Salvation
Religion Today: Cheyenne Mountain
A few years ago I needed some small but complicated parts made and so I picked up some aluminum stock and headed off to the shop to let him work his magic. When I’d arrive at his shop there would be aluminum ribbons or hardened steel chips flying out from his lathe or mill revealing the hidden part beneath that was formerly just a rough sketch or blueprint. On any given day he might be creating parts for a transatlantic racing sailboat, for a Bonneville land speed record vehicle or for a satellite in space. Many of the original GPS satellites held gyroscope components he had machined. People would come from far away because they knew he could do the impossible.
I will often bring along sample parts that I have made with my drill press, hacksaw and file. Miklos holds these up to the light and laughs at my paltry attempts at machining a part. You see perfection is not accomplished by making an old part better. It is accomplished by making a new creation!
Miklos’ mastery of the equipment is amazing as he operates pedals, flips switches, turns handles, monitors gauges and feeds the material into the cutting blade while he adds cutting oil with a small brush. His hands and feet are constantly in motion controlling his machining equipment. Sometimes hot metal chips will land on his hands and arms, but he deftly flicks them off before they burn beneath the surface. At the end of each operation, he measures the results, initially with his caliper and eventually his micrometer. Notes are recorded on paper and reference marks made on the piece and then back into the mill or lathe it goes, because although it is close, it is not perfect yet. Often the part is so close to the design dimensions I will tell him to just forget it. “That is close enough – We’ll go with it like it is” I’ll say, “And if it doesn’t line up quite right, I’ll use some shims.” Miklos looks up in anger and says, “No shims! We don’t use shims!” He seeks not “close enough” but “perfection”. After the part appears to be done, he grabs a file and a polishing cloth and performs a final cleanup of his work while it continues to spin in the lathe jaws right adjacent to his fingers. Unseen sharp edges are removed and the piece that was merely functional now becomes shiny and beautiful. Sometimes the part is hidden, and its appearance is not visible after assembly, but he is never satisfied until the part has a mirror-like finish, even if no one but us will ever be able to see it. At this point the part is done but Miklos has a little ritual he does. He holds up the part in the light and shows me with great pride the hidden details that were never on the drawing. There is a tiny groove cut here and a specially tapered edge there. These small details will accomplish various purposes of making the part stronger, fit closer, allow more easy removal or reduce interference problems with other parts. His mind’s eye seems to be able to see both the big picture and the tiniest detail. In spite of all the ability this master machinist possesses, there is humility in his demeanor. He will not allow me to take a photo of him while he works. I’ve tried, but he steps aside and seems to prefer the focus remain on his creation.
Eventually, I hold in my hand some beautiful, still warm to the touch, part. As a further testimony of the great work that has occurred, there is often a large pile of aluminum chips and steel shavings on the floor. The rough paper sketch is discarded – it won’t be needed anymore.
I’m reminded of our Heavenly Father and how He is shaping us just like a finely machined part. We were redeemed at great cost. The cost was His Son. The smallest almost invisible details are attended to. He is the God of creation and yet His eye is on the sparrow. The unseen places are seen by Him and likewise addressed. We would like to have His work in our lives be a surface polish to knock off some rust – maybe a touch up here or there to make us look good on the outside that is visible for others can see. But He has in mind a more extensive work and a greater result. Large amounts of excess material may need to be removed – cut away so that the real glory of His work and purpose can be revealed. All this may be a bit more than what we hoped for and more intrusive and uncomfortable, but He is looking beyond our short-term comfort and towards our long-term gain. Like He did with Job He holds us up in our finished state as an example of what a great work He has done. And He has promised to continue this work in us until He comes again. Many of us believe that day is coming very soon…
Philippians 1:3-6 “I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.”
Richard Lewis is a graduate of Arizona State University (Advertising) and California Baptist University (Computer Information Systems). Richard and his wife Sue met while they served as staff members at Campus Crusade for Christ for 8 years in the 1970’s. Richard served in the Campus Ministry at University of Texas at El Paso, Louisiana Tech and at the International Headquarters in San Bernardino, California.
Following their ministry in Campus Crusade Richard was the owner and manager of a bicycle shop in Riverside California for 19 years. After retraining in the computer field at California Baptist University, Richard worked as a Information Systems contractor and employee at Boeing for 17 years.
Richard has written over 150 published articles in Information Systems and Computing publications including Windows Magazine and Windows Scripting Solutions. He has also served in a leadership role as a Deacon and Elder in several churches as well as being a meditation presenter and Men’s Ministry coordinator.
Richard has written hundreds of meditations and devotionals that have been used in church and small group meetings. Many of these have been published in The Upper Room and Racers For Christ publications and on their web sites.
In 2021, Richard published a collection of his devotionals. These are available in a Kindle and paperback format on Amazon (ISBN 979-8705738878) “Life Stories to Uplift and Encourage”.
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Trevor Montgomery, 50, moved in 2017 to the Intermountain area of Shasta County from Riverside County and runs Riverside County News Source (RCNS) and Shasta County News Source (SCNS).
Additionally, he writes or has written for several other news organizations; including Riverside County based newspapers Valley News, Valley Chronicle, Anza Valley Outlook, and Hemet & San Jacinto Chronicle; the Bonsall/Fallbrook Village News in San Diego County; and Mountain Echo in Shasta County. He is also a regular contributor to Thin Blue Line TV and Law Enforcement News Network and has had his stories featured on news stations throughout the Southern California and North State regions.
Trevor spent 10 years in the U.S. Army as an Orthopedic Specialist before joining the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department in 1998. He was medically retired after losing his leg, breaking his back, and suffering both spinal cord and brain injuries in an off-duty accident. (Click here to see segment of Discovery Channel documentary of Trevor’s accident.)
During his time with the sheriff’s department, Trevor worked at several different stations; including Robert Presley Detention Center, Southwest Station in Temecula, Hemet/Valle Vista Station, Ben Clark Public Safety Training Center, and Lake Elsinore Station; along with other locations.
Trevor’s assignments included Corrections, Patrol, DUI Enforcement, Boat and Personal Water-Craft based Lake Patrol, Off-Road Vehicle Enforcement, Problem Oriented Policing Team, and Personnel/Background Investigations. He finished his career while working as a Sex Crimes and Child Abuse Investigator and was a court-designated expert in child abuse and child sex-related crimes.
Trevor has been married for more than 30 years and was a foster parent to more than 60 children over 13 years. He is now an adoptive parent and his “fluid family” includes 13 children and 18 grandchildren.