Some tools are not perfect.
Anyone who works with computers knows this. Experience has led me to this
conclusion: Technology is great, except
for when it is not. Printers
mysteriously go offline; no one knows why.
Browsers and word processors flow like molasses and sometimes reach the
solid state, freezing entirely. One
learns to restart the program, then restart the computer. Our old wireless router became decrepit late
in its life. It had good days and bad
days. It might function perfectly for several
consecutive days, then suddenly need rebooting every 10 minutes. When I replaced it a few weeks ago, I
immediately wondered why I waited so long.
Surfing the ’net is now a seamless journey through cyberspace, with no
worries about video buffering or interrupted downloads.
Technology is a fickle servant. I have often wondered how many hours I have
spent waiting for my mouse pointer to stop spinning, or for programs to open,
or for websites to display. In those
moments, I produce nothing, become frustrated, and further reduce my production
capacity. I could get so much more done
if I were not working with such sluggish tools.
I bought a new computer in April, because my laptop became unbearably
slow. It was over four years old, well
past middle age in the computer life-cycle.
Work is much more productive when my tools function efficiently.
This same lesson applies in woodworking. Sharp saws actually cut through boards rather
than burning through them. Healthy
batteries make cordless drilling effortless.
Conversely, breaking drill bits can mar the wood and slow the process. I can work with imperfect tools when
necessary—dull blades, weak batteries and breaking drill bits—but nothing beats
breezing through a project with good tools.
I pity the person who shows up for work, wondering if the
tools will cooperate that day. When my
daughter was ready to get her driver’s license last year, we drove 30 minutes
to the DMV. The clerk there informed us that
her computers were down, and she could not help us; she had no idea when the
system in Raleigh would be back on line.
All she could do was apologize to everyone who walked in. We had to drive another hour to get to
another DMV office.
Sometimes tools behave as if they have minds of their
own. Not only computers but cars, appliances
and audio equipment may seem to choose if they will function. We use those tools routinely, and work around
whatever problems they cause. We curse
them, call them temperamental and may eventually replace them.
Consider that this is the kind of tool that God has to work
with. He chooses to use his people to
bring his kingdom. But we have good days
and bad days. We sometimes choose not to
work. We become dull and run down. Unlike our tools, God’s tools actually choose
whether or not to cooperate. Amazingly,
God uses us imperfect, temperamental, rebellious tools to share his good news
through the ages. Patiently, with us, he
builds his kingdom, day by day, person by person. Though we may be stubborn, hardheaded and
defiant, he loves us and advances his kingdom in us and through us. He accomplishes his purposes, and somehow uses
our mistakes and sins in the process.
God can take a crooked stick and draw a straight line. He knows that we are crooked sticks, and he
loves us anyway. In fact, he cares much
more about us than our production.
So, however God is using you, he recognizes your
imperfections. He knows that sometimes
you refuse to cooperate. Sometimes you
are more awake than others. Some motives
are more pure than others. And he
fashions the kingdom of God with all us imperfect, fickle tools. Sometimes he needs to reboot us. Sometimes he manages around our
slowness. And we are more than tools to
him. We are his dearly loved people, for
whom he died. We are his bride, being
made holy, being perfected. He loves you
not for your work, but for who you are.
If we can accomplish work with our frustrating tools, God
can surely use us for his purposes, the work to which he has called us. He is bringing his kingdom, using us in the
process. Only God could do that. He doesn’t even get frustrated.
