Whew. What a flute. What a paintbrush. What a keyboard!
…Said no one awed in a concert, enjoying an art show, or mesmerized by a book.
The plate, my goodness, it’s spectacular. What a fork!
Said no satisfied diner. Ever.
Those Christians. So good and righteous and flawless. What a bunch!
Said too many people. Often.
They said it in church board meetings. They said it in mission statements. They said it in awards ceremonies, publishing companies, and professional offices. They were Christians and non-Christians alike.
They were and are us.
Because too often we forget we’re not the image of God.
We’re made in the image of.
We’re called to be finely tuned instruments. We’re privileged to delight in the song. But we are not the music.
We’re shaped in our walks of faith to be master-crafted vessels. We are vessels filled to the brim and over-flowing with the Spirit of God. But we are not the Spirit of God.
God’s image, song, Spirit…these are things we are not in and of ourselves. But that’s what makes us us.
Satan’s words in the garden were tricky: he said we “will be like God”…by acting as if we are the same as god.
We already are like God. But we are not Him.
Trouble comes when we let the difference go. Confusion abounds. We are confused about identity, sufficiency, and goodness. We lack assurance about our purpose and strive for meaning as if we must manufacture it to be like God.
It’s the supporting clause of modern mantras:
Be someone.
Make a difference.
Live intentionally.
Only you can choose ________.
Find your calling.
Friends, we have a calling. We are someones to the One true God. Our very existence makes a difference in the world. Intention drives our every decision, whether we’re conscious of it or not. We don’t choose to matter- we matter because we’re created by the One who matters most.
The inherent meaningfulness we crave isn't gained through effort or performance. Share on XBut we are valuable because of the love of God who made us in His own image.
“For we do not preach ourselves, but Christ Jesus as Lord” (2 Corinthians 4:5.)
Our privilege and joy is to be in the hands of our master maker, attuned to His will, and singing His praise with our everyday purposes.
Our meaning is inherently intertwined with the fibers of our being, knit there by the One who made us in the first days, who fills us through the last days.
Our meaning is lived out while we grow as the Creator’s well-loved creations, offering ourselves as living sacrifices for glorious use.
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