Something out of Nothing (blog)

What is it like to be shaped by God?I've been wondering about that ever since Sunday.  Pastor Daniel said in his sermon that God calls us just as we are, and then shapes us into faithful servants.I guess that means we are fashioned to serve as we serve?Well, that makes sense when you think about it.  After all, which of us is born a spouse?  Is anyone prepared to be a parent?!  What about your first day at your job?  To each of these we come, inadequate and often ill-prepared for the reality that awaits us, and yet in time we learn and grow to fit the new role, to serve in our new calling.Somehow, something is created out of nothing and we are changed.  We are called just as we are.  Praise be to God!And all thanks to Him too.  I mean, think about what it means to...to...serve...God!?  The Almighty and Everlasting...Lord of the universe...The Alpha and The Omega...I can't even get it right as a wife and mom...all of the time...I can fool myself into thinking that I am a perfectly wonderul wife and mom (and I might even be able to fool you!).  When things are not so happy at home here, I can explain it all away by telling myself that I am unappreciated or misunderstood.  It's easy to overlook all of the ways that I exasperate my family.But when faced with God, there is no denying the truth that I am just plain unworthy to serve Him.  I am a sinner in need of forgiveness.  I am nothing.Still, He would have me come.  He calls me just the way I am.My family doesn't always tolerate my mistakes, shortcomings and utter failures, and I am quick to point out theirs too.  But amazingly, God uses these very things - everything that makes me unworthy - to shape me into His faithful servant.He calls me to tolerance in my relationships!God also uses the tragic, hurtful things in my life, and the things I am ashamed of, to shape me.  He takes them into His skilled, loving hands and uses them to create new things, like compassion, in me.I used to be impatient waiting for God to lead me into meaningful and significant experiences in life that would shape me into a good and faithful servant.  But now I see that God uses ordinary and everyday experiences for this divine purpose.God is the ultimate recycler!And that is a beautiful thing.  Everything I live and endure has meaning to Him, and in Him.  That makes me feel like something!God is not pressing me into a mold, but masterfully recreating me day by day.  He is not so much working on me as in me.  He's working with me, guiding me.  It's a cooperative work and one that I submit to.  It's a difficult work, needing much repentance and prayer.  It's a mysterious work, beyond my awareness or comprehension, requiring me to have faith and trust in Him.It's discouraging at times.  That's what the fellowship of believers, worship, baptism and The Lord's Supper are for.Always God is calling me to serve Him in new ways, in the church and beyond - helping those in need, being an example for others, telling someone about Jesus and how much He cares.  God shapes me in these things and He shapes me for these things.  Always new things are happening inside of me as I serve Him.That's the wonder of it all.