My dad loved tools. He was extremely handy and could build or fix about anything. If he didn’t know for sure what he was doing, he would tinker with it until he figured it out. Dad would include me in a lot of his projects and taught me how to use some of those tools. I don’t have the same talent he had, but I appreciate what he passed on to me.
Unfortunately, the love of tools and the desire to take care of those tools was not the same thing for my father. His garage was a mess which meant that often, he would not be able to find the tool he needed. His solution was to go buy another one. I did not inherit that carelessness from my dad, but he didn’t realize this. When I became an adult, Dad would give me some kind of tool set every Christmas, “Just in case I had lost something.”
I recently received an update from one of our missionaries that discussed tools, and this reminded me of Dad’s tool obsession. What I took from this article was this question, “What is the purpose of tools?” In other words, what makes a tool most effective. The obvious answer is that it only becomes useful when you take it from the shelf and apply it to the need that exists. It is also important to remember that a tool is most effective when used for its intended purpose. You would have a hard time driving a nail with a screwdriver.
Although God has not called us tools, there exists a very close analogy in his expectation on our lives. In Ephesians 2:8-9, we receive this challenge, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith–and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God– 9 not by works, so that no one can boast. 10 For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” As a benefit at the moment we receive the gift of salvation, we become a tool in the hands of God. We are created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
The principles that make a tool on our workbench valuable can be applied to our lives as well. We are only useful when we get off the workbench and get involved in the task for which we are needed. It’s important to understand that God has designed each of us differently for a specific use. Just as a Phillips head screwdriver is useless on a slotted screw, I am not equipped to do the job God has created for you to accomplish. If the wrong tool is used, it not only makes the project difficult or impossible to accomplish, but it may also damage the tool.
Our response to this understanding has three important elements. First, I must accept that God has a role for me to fill in his kingdom that he has prepared specifically for me. Secondly, I need to get off the workbench and make myself available to God for his use. Finally, once I discover my role, I need to commit to fulfilling it with all that I have, understanding no one else will ever do it as effectively.
This leaves one final question to be answered. “How do I discover what the ‘good work’ is that God has prepared for me?” It begins with looking at how God has made you. What are you good at? What brings you fulfillment and satisfaction in your life? What do you do that others offer you affirmation for and recognize as beneficial? Then simply as God how you can use that to bring him glory. I know men whom God has prepared to be mechanics for his glory. I know people that use their passion for sports to share the love of Jesus with others. Men have glorified God through their love of music or art. The list is as varied as each personality God has created. We just need to jump off the bench and see how God works.