September 18, 2013 … Craftsmanship for Christ

Daily Berry Patch Devotions in 2013 - Day 261

Devotional Song: Go to this link ...  Please meditate on the call of this poignant and powerful song, To Be Pleasing You, sung by The Maranatha Singers, … reminding us our lives, wherever God has planted us, are to be lived to please and glorify our Lord.

Highlight meditation passage – Exodus 31: 1-5 [NLT]: …  
1 The LORD also said to Moses,  2 “Look, I have chosen Bezalel son of Uri, grandson of Hur, of the tribe of Judah. 3 I have filled him with the Spirit of God, giving him great wisdom, intelligence, and skill in all kinds of crafts. 4 He is able to create beautiful objects from gold, silver, and bronze. 5 He is skilled in cutting and setting gemstones and in carving wood. Yes, he is a master at every craft! 
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Highlight meditation passage # 2 – Exodus 36: 1 [NLT]: …  
1 “Bezalel, Oholiab, and the other craftsmen whom the LORD has gifted with wisdom, skill, and intelligence will construct and furnish the Tabernacle, just as the LORD has commanded.”
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Reference Passage #1: Matthew 25: 14-30 [NLT] … Go to this link … [God will reward His faithful disciples.] …

Reference Passage #2: Hebrews 11: 6 [Serving God takes faith.] … [NLT] …  
6 And it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to Him must believe that God exists and that He rewards those who sincerely seek Him. 

Reference Passage #3: Romans 12: 1-2 … Go to this link … [Using our gifts and talents so serve God in the workplace is our living sacrifice and worship of our Lord.] … [NLT] …

 My Journal for Today: Os Hillman in his Workplace Ministries devotional today uses a biblical example from the Old Testament to illustrate a point that I’ve made often in this year of daily blogs; and that is the truth that GOD’S CALLING IS HIS ENABLEMENT. Hillman cites the example from Exodus, Chapters 31 and 36of the craftsman, Bezalel, who served God faithfully by using his skills as a craftsman when God called His servants to build His Tabernacle.

I don’t think it’s a stretch to speculate that most – if not all – born-again Christians desire to faithfully please God [see Hebrews 11: 6, cited above]. Don’t you, when you’re in the presence of the Lord in glory want to hear Him say, “Well done, My good and faithful servant!” …

Of course we do!!

Jesus, in His parable of the talents (see Matthew 25: 14-30 linked above) tells the story, on His way to the cross and Jerusalem, that those who use who they are and what God has given them to serve the Master faithfully will be rewarded for their faithful service. But all too often we are conned by our spiritual enemies to believe the lies that we are worthless where we’ve been planted or that we should be somewhere else doing something more “spiritual” or more “sophisticated” to serve our God.

Os Hillman today, from his testimony, related the story of Os believing that he needed to drop out of the workplace and serve God in ministry by going to seminary to become a “full-time” pastor. But a set of financial circumstances took Hillman back into the workplace where he learned that he was being a “full-time pastor,” serving His Lord faithfully with the skills and gifting God had given him right there in the workplace.

That’s what the Maranatha Singers are singing about in today’s devotional song, linked for your mediation above. We will be pleasing to God and our lives will be a living sacrifice to/for the Lord (see Romans 12: 1-2 linked above) when we resign ourselves that using all God has given us and using in where He has planted us will allow us to one day – in glory – hear the Master say, “Well done, My good and faithful servant!” 

My Prayer for Today … Lord, use me today, as You’ve gifted me, for Your glory! … Amen