Repent, Scottish Sinner!

**ThistleDown** · 24th February 12, 07:15 PM

Edinburgh house painter Smokey Macgregor was always interested in making a penny where he could, so he often thinned down his paint to make it go a wee bit further.

One year Canongate Church decided to do a big outside restoration job.

Smokey put in a bid for the painting part of the project and, because his price was so low, he got the job.

He erected scaffolding, set up planks and ladders, and bought many gallons of paint. And yes, I am sorry to say, even though it was for the kirk, he thinned the paint down with water.

Well, Smokey was up on the scaffolding, painting away, the job nearly completed, when suddenly there was a horrendous clap of thunder, the sky opened, and the rain poured down washing the thinned paint from all over the church and knocking Smokey clear off the scaffold to land on the turf among the gravestones, surrounded by telltale puddles of thinned and useless paint.

Smokey was no fool. He knew this was a judgment from the Almighty, so he got to his knees and cried:

"Oh, Lord, Oh Lord, forgive me; what should I do?"

And from the thunderous sky a mighty voice spoke. . .

"Repaint! Repaint! And thin no more!"