“And we know
that in all things God works for the good of
those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. For those God foreknew he also predestined to
be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn
among
many brothers.” (Rom
8:28-30)
During a recent short term
missions trip to a Bible camp in
Rio Chico, Mexico, one of the tasks I
took on was to clean out and sort the tool storage room. It was
a challenge to decide what to keep and what to toss as I took on the
badly
needed project. The
culturally appropriate thing to do would
be to save everything.
So, many items of "junk" were thrown into an assorted
miscellaneous box. I like those kinds of
boxes, where you store all kinds of odds and ends that you might need
someday. You will probably
need it as
soon as you pitch it, so you keep it just in case.
Many of the items become forgotten until you
dig through that junk drawer the next time. Do
you have one of those places?
As I wondered what to do with some old rusty metal parts, I
thought about those things from my past that are like corroded pieces
of metal I’d
rather not remember or see again. Like old stiff paintbrushes that might
represent the false pictures people painted of me in the past by saying
things
that weren’t true. It hurts when you’re
misunderstood and misrepresented. Or,
maybe it’s old rusty nails, like the hurtful sharp things people have
said to
you. Perhaps you have memories
of
being taken advantage of, “screwed” like an old plumbing fixture. What about the time you said or did
something you wish you could take back, like an old vacuum accessory
buried with other junk?
I think there must be some kind of shelf in my heart for
all
of those miscellaneous things of the past. Perhaps
it’s wise to just hang on to them and leave them
in an assorted
box, trusting God to use them for some good purpose or to help shape
me to
be more like Jesus.
In the USA
we too quickly throw everything away when we clean house.
Maybe it’s wise to just shelf some things
that I’d rather forget and toss. If
God wants to rebuild something or pull it
off
the shelf to work for the good in me and through me….great. Maybe it was some hurt or moment of pain or
suffering like a piece of rusty plumbing. Maybe
God will want to pull that off the shelf someday and
use me as a channel
of living water to bring refreshment to a hurting soul.
Maybe it’s an extra piece of wiring or an electric
fixture that God may want to pull up and use to bring faith and power
to someone
in a time of weakness or darkness. Perhaps
an old rusty nail can be pulled out
of the miscellaneous drawer of my heart and be straightened and used to
hold
some relationship together.
Thank you for redemption,
Father, and thank you that you
cleanse us and purify us and even take the junk from the past and
sanctify it
for kingdom work. Make me more like
Jesus, no matter what old tool you want to use.