Materials

Have you ever noticed how frustrating it is when “materials” don’t cooperate? You are trying to move quickly and get the house cleaned for the week and the vacuum belt breaks. Then when you try to change it you lose the screw that holds the belt cover on! Or, you set aside a couple of hours to do repair work on your car to save some money by changing the alternator yourself – BUT you can loosen every bolt/nut except the last one! How about trying to get your tasks accomplished at work so you can get home on time but the computer keeps freezing up, moving slow, or shuts down altogether?

We all have moments in time when the “materials” we are working with seem to have a mind of their own and their only thought appears to be rebellion and hindrance! The levels of anxiety that rush through our minds and hearts can overwhelm us quickly and result in a display of frustration and even anger. Those feelings can also be multiplied when the “materials” we are dealing with are “people” in our families or lives. They have a mind of their own and their perceived lack of cooperation intensifies our already strained demeanor.

It is just such “material” that God is challenged with as He seeks to work in our lives. His desire is to save us from ourselves and change our character so we won’t self-destruct. The Bible likens us to “clay”, but clay is not alive and cannot really purposefully resist the work of the potter the way we can. We all can creatively drag our feet or ignore the voice of God’s Spirit as He gently, but urgently, tries to get us to yield to the instruction that will bring us life. Character changes are the deep, beneficial work of the Holy Spirit in our hearts, yet those are the most difficult to accomplish because of our tendency to not understand the need to change. The only way God can do that deep, life-work in us is if we, “the material” will cooperate with the process – and that ain’t no small thing!!!!

How exciting to be His people,

Pastor David Vanderpool