1. In the shop of a blacksmith, there are three types of tools. There are tools on the junk pile: outdated, broken, dull, rusty. They sit in the cobwebbed corner, useless to their master, oblivious to their calling. There are tools on the anvil: melted down, molten hot, moldable, changeable. They lie on the anvil, being shaped by their master, accepting their calling. There are tools of usefulness: sharpened, primed, defined, mobile. They lie ready in the blacksmith’s tool chest, available to their master, fulfilling their calling.
2. Some people lie useless: lives broken, talents wasting, fires quenched, dreams dashed. They are tossed in with the scrap iron, in desperate need of repair, with no notion of purpose. Others lie on the anvil: hearts open, hungry to change, wounds healing, visions clearing. They welcome the painful pounding of the blacksmith’s hammer, longing to be rebuilt, begging to be called. Others lie in their Master’s hands: well tuned, uncompromising, polished, productive. They respond to their Master’s forearm, demanding nothing, surrendering all.
3. We’ll discover what Paul meant when he spoke of becoming “an instrument for.noble purposes.” And what a becoming it is! The rubbish pile of broken tools, the anvil of recasting, the hands of the Master—it’s a simultaneously joyful and painful voyage. And for you who make the journey—who leave the heap and enter the fire, dare to be pounded on God’s anvil, and doggedly seek to discover your own purpose—take courage, for you await the privilege of being called “God’s chosen instruments.”
PART 1: THE PILE OF BROKEN TOOLS
ONE: THE PILE OF BROKEN TOOLS
1. To find me, look over in the corner of the shop, over here, behind the cobwebs, beneath the dust, in the darkness. There are scores of us, broken handles, dulled blades, cracked iron. Some of us were useful once, and then . . . many of us never were. But, listen, don’t feel sorry for me. Life ain’t so bad here in the pile . . .no work, no anvils, no pain, no sharpening, And yet, the days are very long.
Are you broken, too? Do you think God might be calling you “off the pile”? What would that require of you?
TWO: I AM VERY WEARY
1. Weariness is tough. I don’t mean the physical weariness that comes from mowing the lawn or the mental weariness that follows a hard day of decisions and thinking. No, the weariness that attacked Judge Crater is much worse. It’s the weariness that comes just before you give up. That feeling of honest desperation. It’s the dispirited father, the abandoned child, or the retiree with time on his hands. It’s that stage in life when motivation disappears: the children grow up, a job is lost, a spouse dies. The result is weariness—deep, lonely, frustrated weariness.
2. Only one man in history has claimed to have an answer for it. He stands before all the Joseph Craters of the world with the same promise: “Come to me, all you who are weary . . . and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28).
Have you ever been truly weary? What do you do when you feel that way? Have you ever known the rest Christ offers? If not, why not? How do you place yourself in Christ’s rest?
THREE: NOW, DON'T GET CARRIED AWAY!
"Peter followed at a distance" (Luke 22:54)
1. Peter learned a lesson that day—a hard lesson. It is better to have never followed Jesus than to have followed Him and denied Him.2. Mark these words: Follow at a distance and you’ll deny the Master. Period. You won’t die for a man you can’t touch. Period. But stay near to Him, in His shadow. . . . You’ll die with Him, gladly.
Have you been “carried away” by Jesus?What keeps you at a distance? What do you need to give to God?
FOUR: SOUR GRAPES
1. I once knew a man who came every Sunday to be entertained and not to encourage. He remarked that the Sunday afternoon game was more exciting than the Sunday morning assembly. I wasn’t surprised.
Sound familiar? What negative impact does this type of person have? Have you ever felt like that man? What influences helped you shift your attitude?
FIVE: BILLIE RESIGNS
1. When Billie resigned from life, she became a social recluse. Her yard became a jungle. Her home became a source of ghost stories and old wives’ tales. She overate. She withdrew. She didn’t care.. Billie resigned. Her life stands as a quiet legacy to us all. Man must have something larger than death . . . or death takes man.
1. When Billie resigned from life, she became a social recluse. Her yard became a jungle. Her home became a source of ghost stories and old wives’ tales. She overate. She withdrew. She didn’t care.. Billie resigned. Her life stands as a quiet legacy to us all. Man must have something larger than death . . . or death takes man.
Do you know someone who has “resigned” from life? What keeps you engaged in life when difficulties strike? How do you think God is calling you to live?
SIX: FOR THE LOVE OF A STRANGER AND THE LACKED OF A NAME
We don’t know the emotions, but we believe we know their result.
1. Our world has little room for failures. Our success-centered enterprise system is ideal for the successful but devastating for the loser. In an effort to create winners, we also create misfits. Jesus had a place for misfits. In His book the last became first, and even the loser had value. It is our responsibility to be like Christ. It is our responsibility to intercept a life like John Hinckley’s and fill it with value.
Where does our value come from? Have you ever questioned your own value? Why?How does a relationship with Christ affirm our value? How can you put into action Christ’s view of the misfits in your world?
SEVEN: MERCY, NOT SACRIFICE
But go and learn what this means: “I desire mercy, not sacrifice.” For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners (Matthew 9:13).
“Lord,” I said, “I want to be your man, not my own.
So to you I give my money, my car—even my home.”
Then, smug and content, I relaxed with a smile
And whispered to God, “I bet it’s been a while
Since anyone has given so much—so freely?”
His answer surprised me. He replied, “Not really.
“Not a day has gone by since the beginning of time,
That someone hasn’t offered meager nickels and dimes, Golden altars and
crosses, contributions and penance,
Stone monuments and steeples; but why not repentance?
“The money, the statues, the cathedrals you’ve built,
Do you really think I need your offerings of guilt?
What good is money that’s meant only to salve
The hurting conscience that so many of you have?
“Your lips know no prayers. Your eyes, no compassion.
But you will go to church (when churchgoing’s in fashion).
“Just give me a tear—a heart ready to mold.
And I’ll give you a mission, a message so bold—
That a fire will be stirred where there was only death,
And your heart will be flamed by my life and my breath.”
I stuck my hands in my pockets and kicked at the dirt.
It’s tough to be corrected (I guess my feelings were hurt).
But it was worth the struggle to realize the thought
That the Cross isn’t for sale and Christ’s blood can’t be bought.
What are you offering to Jesus? What gift does Jesus ask of you?
How do you truly embrace the sacrifice Jesus made?
EIGHT: WHO IS RIGHTEOUS?
Question: O Lord, who shall live in your tent?
Answer: He who does what is right. (Psalm 15:1-2, paraphrased)
Have you ever noticed how many people want to be right before God?
1. Some people get mission-minded: They learn new languages, they teach untaught people, they take pictures of converts and speak at conferences. They are righteous, they say . . . and they all huddle together and sneer at those who are not.
2. You know, I think that sometimes God looks down at this dusty footstool and sees the righteous theological huddle, the righteous missionary huddle, the righteous vocational huddle. . . and I think He sighs.
What is righteousness? Who is righteous?
Are you a “righteous huddler”? How can you break out of the huddle?
What is your attitude toward others? What should it be?
NINE: HOPE FOR LEO?
1. Leo was in that era of life when all you have to look forward to is death and all you have to look back on is memories. To Leo, life was very real. To Leo, life was very empty. Maybe it was unfair that I asked such a painful question, but I asked it anyway: “If you could live life all over again, would you?” He looked at me and then at the floor. “No,” he said sadly. “I don’t think so.” It’s hard to be without light in a dark world.
Do you ever feel that you are without that kind of light—even in your walk with Christ? Does life seem empty to you?
Do you experience the hope of Jesus?
How can you live in the peace and hope of Christ—and how can you share it with others?
TEN: JUDAS, THE MAN WHO NEVER KNEW
1. For all the things we don’t know about Judas, there is one thing we know for sure: He had no relationship with the Master. He had seen Jesus, but he did not know Him. He had heard Jesus, but he did not understand Him. He had a religion but no relationship. As Satan worked his way around the table in the upper room, he needed a special kind of man to betray our Lord. He needed a man who had seen Jesus but who did not know Him. He needed a man who knew the actions of Jesus but had missed out on the mission of Jesus. Judas was this man. He knew the empire but had never known the Man.
2. We learn this timeless lesson from the betrayer. Satan’s best tools of destruction are not from outside the church; they are within the church. A church will never die from the immorality in Hollywood or the corruption in Washington. But it will die from corrosion within—from those who bear the name of Jesus but have never met him and from those who have religion but no relationship. Judas bore the cloak of religion, but he never knew the heart of Christ. Let’s make it our goal to know . . . deeply.
What qualities come to mind when you think of Judas? Do you share any of those characteristics?
What’s the difference between having a religion and having a relationship?
ELEVEN: THE HOPE THAT WENT IGNORED
1. In the search for truth, the means often become the end.
TWELVE: EYES THAT NEVER SEE, EARS THAT NEVER HEAR
1. Sometimes I want to stand at the corner of the street and yell, “Doesn’t anyone want to know why? Why lonely evenings? Why broken hearts? Why abandoned marriages? Why fatherless babies?” But I never yell it. I just stick my hands in my pockets and stare . . . and wonder. The most deadly trick of Satan is not to rob us of answers. It’s to steal our questions.
What is the difference between contentment and complacency?
What is the source of complacency?
What would it take to shake your complacency?
THIRTEEN: NEW WINE IS FOR FRESH SKINS
1. Think for a minute. Do you have any wineskins that need to be thrown out? Look closely in your closet. They come in all sizes. Maybe yours is an old indulgence—food, clothes, sex. Or an old habit, like gossip or profanity. Or possibly, like Steve, an old relationship. No friendship or romance is worth your soul. Repentance means change. And change means purging your heart of anything that can’t coexist with Christ.
2. You can’t put new life into an old lifestyle. The inevitable tragedy occurs. The new life is lost.
What are your old wineskins? What will it take for you to throw them out?
Are you willing to throw them out? If not—why not?
PART 2: ON THE ANVIL
FOURTEEN: ON THE ANVIL
1. The smith knows the type of instrument he wants. He knows the size. He knows the shape. He knows the strength. Whang! Whang! The hammer slams. The shop rings with noise, the air fills with smoke, and the softened metal responds. But the response doesn’t come easily. It doesn’t come without discomfort. To melt down the old and recast it as new is a disrupting process. Yet the metal remains on the anvil, allowing the toolmaker to remove the scars, repair the cracks, refill the voids, and purge the impurities.
2. And with time, a change occurs: What was dull becomes sharpened, what was crooked becomes straight, what was weak becomes strong, and what was useless becomes valuable.
“For a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed” (1 Peter 1:6-7).
Describe your own experiences with grief or difficult times. What have you learned through these experiences?
Has suffering affected your faith? In what ways?
FIFTEEN: ANVIL TIME
1. On God’s anvil. Perhaps you’ve been there. Melted down. Formless. Undone. Placed on the anvil for . . . reshaping? (A few rough edges too many.) Discipline? (A good father disciplines.) Testing? (But why so hard?)
2. Anvil time. It can be caused by a death, a breakup, going broke, going prayerless. The light switch is flipped off and the room darkens. “All the thoughtful words of help and hope have all been nicely said. But I’m still hurting, wondering. . . .”
3. On the anvil. Brought face-to-face with God out of the utter realization that we have nowhere else to go. Jesus in the garden. Peter with a tear-streaked face. David after Bathsheba. Elijah and the “still, small voice.” Paul, blind in Damascus.
4. Anvil time is not to be avoided; it’s to be experienced. Although the tunnel is dark, it does go through the mountain. Anvil time reminds us of who we are and who God is. We shouldn’t try to escape it. To escape it could be to escape God.
5. God sees our life from beginning to end. He may lead us through a storm at age thirty so we can endure a hurricane at age sixty. An instrument is useful only if it’s in the right shape. A dull ax or a bent screwdriver needs attention, and so do we. A good blacksmith keeps His tools in shape. So does God.
Should God place you on His anvil, be thankful. It means He thinks you’re still worth reshaping.
Is it anvil time for you? What does that look like?
What is your hope for the reshaping that is taking place?
Has God left an imprint on your life? What does that mean to you?
SIXTEEN: FOOTPRINTS OF SATAN
Once he was approached by a leper, who knelt before Him begging his help. “If only you will,” said the man, “you can cleanse me.” In warm indignation Jesus stretched out His hand, [and] touched him (Mark 1:40-41, NEB).
1. Jesus saw a leper one day . . . fingers gnarled . . . skin ulcerated . . . face disfigured. And he got indignant . . . angry. Not a selfish, violent anger. A HOLY anger . . . a controlled frustration . . .a compassionate disgust. And it moved Him. It moved Him to action.
2. May we never grow so “holy,” may we never be so “mature,” may we never become so “religious,” that we can see the footprints of Satan and stay calm.
What do you think is meant by “footprints of Satan”?
Does anything move you, as it does Jesus, to the kind of indignation described here?
Are you willing to stretch toward someone in need of your touch? Who might that be?
SEVENTEEN: THUMP-THUD, THUMP-TUD
1. When a potter bakes a pot, he checks its solidity by pulling it out of the oven and thumping it. If it “sings,” it’s ready. If it “thuds,” it’s placed back in the oven. The character of a person is also checked by thumping.
2. Jesus said that out of the nature of the heart a man speaks (Luke 6:45). There’s nothing like a good thump to reveal the nature of a heart. The true character of a person is seen not in momentary heroics but in the thump-packed humdrum of day-to-day living. If you have a tendency to thud more than you sing, take heart.
3. There is hope for us “thudders”:
• Begin by thanking God for thumps. I don’t mean a half-hearted thank-you. I mean a rejoicing, jumping-for-joy thank-you from the bottom of your heart (James 1:2). Chances are that God is doing the thumping. And he’s doing it for your own good. So every thump is a reminder that God is molding you (Hebrews 12:5-8).
• Learn from each thump. Face up to the fact that you are not “thump-proof.” You are going to be tested from now on. You might as well learn from the thumps—you can’t avoid them. Look upon each inconvenience as an opportunity to develop patience and persistence. Each thump will help you or hurt you, depending on how you use it.
• Be aware of “thump-slump” times. Know your pressure periods. For all of us, there are times during the week when we can anticipate an unusual amount of thumping. The best way to handle thump-slump times? Head on. Bolster yourself with extra prayer, and don’t give up.
Remember, no thump is disastrous. All thumps work for good if we are loving and obeying God.
Have you felt the divine Potter’s thump lately? Why do you think He might be
testing you?
If it’s been a while since you’ve been thumped, why do you think that is?
Would you describe your spiritual attitude as singing, or thudding?
EIGHTEEN: WHO PUSHES YOUR SWING?
1. Children love to swing. There’s nothing like it. Thrusting your feet toward the sky, leaning so far back that everything looks upside down. Spinning trees, a stomach that jumps into your throat. Ahh, swinging. . . . I learned a lot about trust on a swing. As a child, I only trusted certain people to push my swing. If I was being pushed by people I trusted (like Dad or Mom), they could do anything they wanted. They could twist me, turn me, stop me. . . . I loved it! I loved it because I trusted the person pushing me.
2. Remember when Jesus stilled the storm in Matthew 8? The storm wasn’t just a gentle spring rain. This was a storm. Matthew calls the storm a seismos, which is the Greek word for “earthquake.” The waves in this earthquake were so high that the boat was hidden. The Sea of Galilee can create a vicious storm. Even veteran fishermen like Peter knew this storm could be their last. So, with fear and water on their faces, they ran to wake up Jesus. They ran to do what? Jesus was asleep? Waves tossing the boat like popcorn in a popper, and Jesus was asleep? Water flooding the deck and soaking the sailors, and Jesus was in dreamland? How in the world could He sleep through a storm? Simple. He knew who was pushing the swing.
The disciples’ knees were knocking because their swing was being pushed by a stranger. Not so with Jesus. He could find peace in the storm.
3. Everywhere I look, private storms occur. Family deaths, strained marriages, broken hearts, lonely evenings. We must remember who is pushing the swing. We must put our trust in Him. We can’t grow fearful. He won’t let us tumble out.
Who pushes your swing? In the right hands, you can find peace . . . even in the storm.
Are you swinging freely—or are you in the midst of a storm? Do you find yourself learning to trust God more in either circumstance?
Do you really believe God is pushing your swing? Why?
NINETEEN: JUAN—LUNCH
1. On Friday, May 7, my calendar reads Juan—Lunch. The lunch date never occurred. Juan killed himself on Thursday, May 6. What emotions do I feel?
• Confusion. The black veil of hopeless death falls viciously. Why? How horrid it is to be governed by laws we don’t understand.
• Guilt. You see, we were originally scheduled to have lunch on May 6, but I had postponed it to May 7. I can’t help but wonder, What if I hadn’t canceled? But the guilt will pass. I know too well my own failures. The inability to forgive oneself is itself suicidal.
• Clarity. How death clears the fog! The abrupt departure of life starkly reminds me of why we are here. Death causes all other preoccupations of life to tumble down the hill, leaving at the top this one priority: Jesus Christ rose from the dead and God has forgiven my failures. When all we have to face is death and all we have to remember are memories, Jesus’ victory and God’s forgiveness will be the only things that matter.
2. Why am I writing this? It comforts me, for one thing. For another, I want you to know how terribly vital each person in the world is. I loved Juan. In a small way, this is a tribute to him. He was a victim of despair. He wanted a life he couldn’t have. He had a life he couldn’t handle. Juan was caught in a shouting match between the world on one side and a handful of us on the other. “Life isn’t worth it!” screamed the world. “Yes it is,” we yelled back. “No it isn’t.” “Yes it is!” And there was Juan in the middle, caught and confused. He’d look at us—then at the world. A puppy between two masters. Finally, we were outshouted. “You’re right, it isn’t worth it!” He despaired and jumped.
But we can’t quit shouting. Many may ignore us, but many will hear. And if only one hears, isn’t it worth it?
Do you know someone whose words or actions betray a sense of despair? What
could you do to extend an offer of hope?
Are you caught between two masters in any aspect of your life? What are they—
and which master do you want to serve?
TWENTY: LIFE FROM THE PRESS BOX
1. It made sense, after someone explained it to me, why our high school football coach would always disappear in the middle of the third quarter. “Where’s the coach?” I asked, thinking I was the only one to notice his absence, which made me feel important. “In the press box,” he answered. “Getting coffee?” I asked. “No, getting perspective.”
2. Occasionally we need to try that on ourselves, too. How vital it is that we keep a finger on the pulse of our own lives. How critical are those times of self-examination and evaluation. Yet it’s hard to evaluate ourselves while we’re in the middle of the game: schedules pressing, phones ringing, children crying. I’ve got a suggestion. Take some press-box time. Take some time (at least half a day) and get away from everything and everyone.
Take your Bible and a notebook and get a press-box view of your life. Are you as in tune with God as you need to be? How is your relationship with your mate and children? What about your goals in life? Perhaps some decisions need to be made. Spend much time in prayer. Meditate on God’s Word. Be quiet. Fast for the day.
3. I’m suggesting an intense, soul-searching day spent in reverence before God and in candid honesty with yourself. Write down your life story. Reread God’s story. I might mention that a day like this won’t just happen. It must be made. You’ll never wake up and just happen to have a free day on your hands. You’ll have to pull out the calendar, elbow out a time in the schedule, and take it. Be stubborn with it. You need the time. Your family needs you to take this time.
Getting some press-box perspective could change the whole ball game.
What areas of your life require your focused attention or judgment?
In your quiet time with God, what truths has He revealed to you?
TWENTY ONE: THE VALUE OF A RELATIONSHIP
1. Relationships. America’s most precious resource. Take our oil, take our weapons, but don’t take what holds us together-relationships. A nation’s strength is measured by the premium it puts on its own people. When people value people, an impenetrable web is drawn, a web of vitality and security. A relationship. The delicate fusion of two human beings. The intricate weaving of two lives; two sets of moods, mentalities, and temperaments. Two intermingling hearts, both seeking solace and security.
What matters most in life is not what ladders we climb or what ownings we accumulate. What matters most is a relationship.
2. What steps are you taking to protect your “possessions”? What measure are you using to ensure that your relationships are strong and healthy? What are you doing to solidify the bridges between you and those in your world? Do you resolve conflict as soon as possible, or do you “let the sun go down when you are still angry”? Do you verbalize your love every day to your mate and children? Do you look for chances to forgive? Do you pray daily for those in your life? Do you count the lives of your family members and friends more important than your own?
3. Our Master knew the value of a relationship. It was through relationships that He changed the world. His movement thrived not on personality or power but on championing the value of a person. He built bridges and crossed them. Touching the leper . . . uniting the estranged . . . exalting the prostitute. And what was that He said about loving your neighbor as yourself?
It’s a wise man who values people above possessions.
What is your most valued possession?
How would you describe your relationships?
Describe your most important relationship—the one with God.
TWENTY TWO: NO MORE CURTAIN!
1. A great curtain hung as a reminder of the distance between God and man. It was like a deep chasm that no one could bridge. Man on His island . . .quarantined because of sin. God could have left it like that. He could have left the people isolated. He could have washed his hands of the whole mess. He could have turned back, tossed in the towel, and started over on another planet. He could have, you know. But He didn’t.
2. God Himself bridged the chasm. In the darkness of an eclipsed sun, He and a lamb stood in the Holy of Holies. “Behold the Lamb of God.” And then it happened. God turned and looked one last time at the curtain.
“No more.” And it was torn . . . from top to bottom. Ripped in two.
“No more!”
“No more curtain!”
“No more sacrifices!”
“No more separation!”
And the sun came out.
Is there any way in which you are still living at a distance from God?
What is your attitude toward your sin? Do you think you have to appease God? Do you think you can?
Do you take the Lamb’s sacrifice for granted?
TWENTY THREE: HAVE YOU SEEN JESUS?
1. It was indeed a dramatic picture. In the midst of this carnival of marble columns and golden idols, a penniless, homeless, nameless Nazarene asks His band of followers, “Who do you say I am?” (Matthew 16:13-16).
Peter’s response sliced the silence. “I believe that you are . . . the Son of God.”
2. Many have looked at Jesus, but few have seen Him. Many have seen His shadow, His people, His story. But only a handful have seen Jesus. Only a few have looked through the fog of religiosity and found Him. Only a few have dared to stand eye-to-eye and heart-to-heart with Jesus and say, “I believe that you are the Son of God.”
What do you see when you consider Jesus of Nazareth? What do you believe about His claims?
What does your life say about what you believe?
If you haven’t had an encounter with Jesus like this one lately, do you think you have given Him a prominent place in your life?
TWENTY FOUR: A GOOD HEART, BUT...
(Scene—Sunday a.m. assembly; silent prayer)
Max: God, I want to do great things.
God: You do?
Max: You bet! I want to teach millions! I want to fill the Rose Bowl! I want all of the world to know your saving power! I dream of the day—
God: That’s great, Max. In fact, I can use you today after church.
Max: Super! How about some radio and TV work or . . . or . . . or an engagement to speak to Congress?
God: Well, that’s not exactly what I had in mind. See that fellow sitting next to you?
Max: Yes.
God: He needs a ride home.
Max (quietly): What?
God: He needs a ride home. And while you’re at it, one of the older ladies sitting near you is worried about getting a refrigerator moved. Why don’t you drop by this afternoon and—
Max (pleading): But, God, what about the world?
God (smiling): Think about it.
Have you ever wanted to do something great for God?
Are you willing to obey him in small ways?
What opportunities for serving God are yours today?
TWENTY FIVE: THE HIKER
1. Some hiker. Too tired to go on, yet too ashamed to go home. Deep, deep is the struggle. No longer can he hear the voices of friends. Long gone is the romance of his mission. No longer does he float on the fancifulness of a dream.
2. The hiker, now almost the storm’s victim, looks one last time for the fire. (Is there any greater challenge than that of stirring a spirit while in the clutches of defeat?). Yearning and clawing, the temptation to quit is gradually overcome by the urge to go on. Blowing on the coals, the hiker once again hears the call to the desert. Though faint, the call is clear. With all the strength he can summon, the hiker rises to his feet, bows his head, and takes his first step into the wind.
Are you huddling down on the road you were called to walk?
When you’re tempted to quit, do you question the call? Do you still hear it? Did
it change?
Have you asked God to renew your sense of purpose lately? What is He asking you to do?
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