An energetic person can fashion a piece of wood into a crude swing, a bow and arrow, spear or club.
My grandfather could build almost anything he desired from wood. If there were a serious flaw in it, he would save that piece for a different use.
His projects seemingly lasted forever. I still have a bookcase he made many years ago; it houses my most precious treasures.
I have an uncle who uses his skills to make paddleboats, airplanes, cars and trucks. Kids — even those of us over age 50 — love to have his wooden works and see the detail he puts into them.
Growing up, a board was not safe during quiet times around my dad. With one of his pocket knives, he would shape it into propellers for airplanes, slingshots — almost anything you can imagine.
The airplane design was simple, but the whole idea was for the props to spin, and did they ever. A couple of years ago, he made a slingshot for one of my grandchildren. It is in my home, locked away for times when he comes up. He loves to shoot it, and it brings me pleasure to share this part of my heritage with my grands.
In these men's hands, a simple piece of wood could become almost anything one's heart could desire.
God the Father looks at us in the same light. We come to Him unshaped, possibly flawed, and yet He can remove our flaws and use us for His will. He looks at us with a desire in His heart to make us into something that can protect, uplift, strengthen, and even correct another.
However, He does not need a special tool to transform us; He simply needs our obedience.
The events of your life are being used by the Master to create His most perfect work yet.
That wood does not complain when it is scraped, sanded and torched. Perhaps it trusts the craftsman to use it correctly.
God allows us to be shaped for His glory. Perhaps we can trust that His imagination does not run short on how He wants to use us.
I believe it is about time that we trust Him to use whatever means necessary to bring out the best in us — for His glory, not ours.
Look at what He has brought you through, and rejoice that He will get you through even more, and you will be more beautiful in His sight. God bless you.
The Rev. Richard Helms serves at Miracle Acres Ministries, 3187 E. James Lee Blvd., Crestview.
This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: HELMS: God shapes us for His glory