Old Tools for New Work

"Noah was now 601 years old.  On the first day of the new year, ten and a half months after the flood began, the floodwaters had almost dried up from the earth.  Noah lifted back the covering of the boat and saw that the surface of the ground was drying."  Genesis 8:13

This past weekend I ventured out in the cold to trim dead blooms off the rose bushes in the yard with our new hedge clippers and I noticed something.  The new clippers weren't as good as the old ones.  They were made from cheaper material.  The blades weren't as sharp, and they weren't put together as well, either.  After struggling to make it through one rose bush with the new clippers, it was time to fish the old pair out of the recycle bin.

The blades on the old clippers had gathered a little rust which needed cleaning.  They needed a little oil for lubrication.  And finally, just a little tightening of the loosened joint holding them together and they were good as new—better than new, in fact.  The job of rose-trimming was finished cleaner, faster, and with less effort than the new pair of trimmers could ever deliver.

Sometimes as Christians we think God needs a new set of clippers to do His work, too.  All the while, you and I are just the model He's looking for.  We may need a little oil, a little tightening, and we may have a little rust that needs cleaning off, but God uniquely equips us for every task He gives.

In the story above, Noah was starting the new year and life as he knew it all over again—at 601 years old.  Just imagine it.  I wonder if Noah considered himself old.  Whether he did or not, God saw Noah as just the right tool for the job.  The human race was beginning again—with Noah and his family.  As he lifted back the cover of the ark to see the light of a new day dawning—how thrilling it must have been!

But, what if Noah had refused God's call to build the ark because he thought himself too old?  I can't even begin to imagine it.  I don't want to imagine refusing God at any age.

Maybe God is calling you and calling me to a new work this year.  Perhaps you've been cooped up in the woodshed for a long time or placed in the recycle bin thinking your useful days are gone.  Remember that God can recycle anyone—perfectly, beautifully.  You are just the tool He's looking for.

"For I am about to do something new.  See, I have already begun!  Do you not see it?  I will make a pathway through the wilderness.  I will create rivers in the dry wasteland."  Isaiah 43:19

We're never too old to do a new work for God.  

Goodnight, Runners.