"Wasting" Time and Talent
Exodus 37:1-9
1 Bezalel made the ark of acacia wood; it was two and a half cubits long, a cubit and a half wide, and a cubit and a half high. 2 He overlaid it with pure gold inside and outside, and made a molding of gold around it. 3 He cast for it four rings of gold for its four feet, two rings on its one side and two rings on its other side. 4 He made poles of acacia wood, and overlaid them with gold, 5 and put the poles into the rings on the sides of the ark, to carry the ark. 6 He made a mercy seat of pure gold; two cubits and a half was its length, and a cubit and a half its width. 7 He made two cherubim of hammered gold; at the two ends of the mercy seat he made them, 8 one cherub at the one end, and one cherub at the other end; of one piece with the mercy seat he made the cherubim at its two ends. 9 The cherubim spread out their wings above, overshadowing the mercy seat with their wings. They faced one another; the faces of the cherubim were turned toward the mercy seat.
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Reluctantly, but with very good Kingdom sense, I recently gave up a very good job, and – perhaps with less sense -- made no plans about what to do next. Now, I’m wondering, “What do I do next?” I know God required me to leave that job behind. But, He hasn’t been clear about what to do next. One option is to continue in the same line. But, easy as that might be, it does not appeal to me at all.
What does the Lord (whose call I have surely heard) need me to do?
Today’s reading describes Bezalel building the ark. Read before and further, and you find the remarkable attention to detail, the incredible skill and creativity brought to bear – and you get a sense of the sheer extravagance of it all, both in terms of time spent on the endeavor and the material used: lots of pure gold. It’s worth remembering that the people of Israel are wandering through the desert towards the Promised Land. Shouldn’t they hurry to their destination? Shouldn’t they be doing something productive to fulfill that goal? Wouldn’t Bezalel’s skills be better used to facilitate the journey? Designing a new flying machine, perhaps? And what about all that gold? What appalling extravagance!
And, yet, all of this pleases God, meeting His requirements.
So, back to my question: What do I do here in the desert, a place to which God has brought me as surely as He brought the Israelites to the Sinai?
I read up a little about Bezalel, whom I hadn’t heard about before. Turns out that the Lord called him, too: (35: 30-33) "See, the Lord has called by name Bezalel son of Uri son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah; he has filled him with divine spirit, with skill, intelligence, and knowledge in every kind of craft, to devise artistic designs, to work in gold, silver, and bronze, in cutting stones for setting, and in carving wood, in every kind of craft . . ."
His talent does not seem to match his place or circumstances; you wouldn’t think it was particularly useful to people wandering in the desert. But, here he was, a skilled artisan, given this talent by the Lord Himself, and called by Him to use it for His glory at this inconvenient time, in this unlikely place.
So, is the Lord calling me to use skills that He has given me in this unlikely place, too? Is He calling you? Is He calling us to use our talents extravagantly for His purpose and His glory, with no obvious productivity to show for? Will it mean “wasting” our time and “wasting” our talents and resources as far as the world is concerned – all for God’s glory and God’s purpose?
At the end of Exodus, Bezalel’s completed work – the Tabernacle -- is filled with the glory of the Lord.
So much for a wasting his time and talent.
What “Tabernacle” does the Lord require us “to build” with our skills, so that, wherever He has placed us, His glory may have a place to fill?
------------------
Dear Lord,
You called Bezalel to use his God-given skills in a way that made little earthly sense, and yet it pleased you and brought you great glory. Please help me hear your voice. I know you have called me, too. Let your call drown out the common sense of the world, including my own, and direct me to use my skills -- all for your glory and your purpose.
Amen.
1 Bezalel made the ark of acacia wood; it was two and a half cubits long, a cubit and a half wide, and a cubit and a half high. 2 He overlaid it with pure gold inside and outside, and made a molding of gold around it. 3 He cast for it four rings of gold for its four feet, two rings on its one side and two rings on its other side. 4 He made poles of acacia wood, and overlaid them with gold, 5 and put the poles into the rings on the sides of the ark, to carry the ark. 6 He made a mercy seat of pure gold; two cubits and a half was its length, and a cubit and a half its width. 7 He made two cherubim of hammered gold; at the two ends of the mercy seat he made them, 8 one cherub at the one end, and one cherub at the other end; of one piece with the mercy seat he made the cherubim at its two ends. 9 The cherubim spread out their wings above, overshadowing the mercy seat with their wings. They faced one another; the faces of the cherubim were turned toward the mercy seat.
------------------
Reluctantly, but with very good Kingdom sense, I recently gave up a very good job, and – perhaps with less sense -- made no plans about what to do next. Now, I’m wondering, “What do I do next?” I know God required me to leave that job behind. But, He hasn’t been clear about what to do next. One option is to continue in the same line. But, easy as that might be, it does not appeal to me at all.
What does the Lord (whose call I have surely heard) need me to do?
Today’s reading describes Bezalel building the ark. Read before and further, and you find the remarkable attention to detail, the incredible skill and creativity brought to bear – and you get a sense of the sheer extravagance of it all, both in terms of time spent on the endeavor and the material used: lots of pure gold. It’s worth remembering that the people of Israel are wandering through the desert towards the Promised Land. Shouldn’t they hurry to their destination? Shouldn’t they be doing something productive to fulfill that goal? Wouldn’t Bezalel’s skills be better used to facilitate the journey? Designing a new flying machine, perhaps? And what about all that gold? What appalling extravagance!
And, yet, all of this pleases God, meeting His requirements.
So, back to my question: What do I do here in the desert, a place to which God has brought me as surely as He brought the Israelites to the Sinai?
I read up a little about Bezalel, whom I hadn’t heard about before. Turns out that the Lord called him, too: (35: 30-33) "See, the Lord has called by name Bezalel son of Uri son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah; he has filled him with divine spirit, with skill, intelligence, and knowledge in every kind of craft, to devise artistic designs, to work in gold, silver, and bronze, in cutting stones for setting, and in carving wood, in every kind of craft . . ."
His talent does not seem to match his place or circumstances; you wouldn’t think it was particularly useful to people wandering in the desert. But, here he was, a skilled artisan, given this talent by the Lord Himself, and called by Him to use it for His glory at this inconvenient time, in this unlikely place.
So, is the Lord calling me to use skills that He has given me in this unlikely place, too? Is He calling you? Is He calling us to use our talents extravagantly for His purpose and His glory, with no obvious productivity to show for? Will it mean “wasting” our time and “wasting” our talents and resources as far as the world is concerned – all for God’s glory and God’s purpose?
At the end of Exodus, Bezalel’s completed work – the Tabernacle -- is filled with the glory of the Lord.
So much for a wasting his time and talent.
What “Tabernacle” does the Lord require us “to build” with our skills, so that, wherever He has placed us, His glory may have a place to fill?
------------------
Dear Lord,
You called Bezalel to use his God-given skills in a way that made little earthly sense, and yet it pleased you and brought you great glory. Please help me hear your voice. I know you have called me, too. Let your call drown out the common sense of the world, including my own, and direct me to use my skills -- all for your glory and your purpose.
Amen.
posted by Ruth at 6:22 AM
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