Our small boys gripped our hands tightly as we watched massive redwood logs butted into place with a thud, sending a shudder throughout the sawmill. The high-pitched whine of thousands of saw teeth biting into timber was deafening.

Upstairs, away from the noise, we examined the immense blades at close range, 40 feet in circumference, suspended far above the sharpening room floor. Here machinists worked over the previous shift's blades, spending 45 minutes to sharpen each saw tooth by tooth.

The immense band saws ripped steadily for four hours, then were removed and sharpened before being pitted against the oversize logs again. The routine continued day and night--four hours of cutting, then a rest for sharpening. Work then sharpen. Given this care blades last for years and boards sawn from the timbers are clean cut every time.

Our lives are much like those giant blades. To cut cleanly day after day, we need to come aside for regular sharpening, faithfully submitting to the Master's maintenance. Quiet time with our Lord may seem unproductive to those seduced by the dizzying compulsion of the day's demands. Yet we who take a longer view of productivity recognize this appointment as indispensable in order to keep the cutting edge.

"And He said, 'Come away by yourselves to a lonely place, and rest a while'" (Mark 6:31, NASB).