What I've learned from hot rods

The men of Heart of a Craftsman have been busy again ministering to boys from the Tulsa Boys Home during the summer hot rod camp!  I am always amazed at the ways God teaches me...here's some things I've learned from hot  rods recently

Hot rods are shiny...we are to shine

In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven. (Matthew 5:16 NIV84)

Those who are wise will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars for ever and ever. (Daniel 12:3 NIV84)

Hot rod builders are meticulous in the details...Jesus is perfecting the details in our lives

Do you see those 3 bumps in the interior? It is a minor detail that takes time to perfect, but the builders did not overlook that detail.  I watched them working on the upholstery...they kept working until it was perfected. The welding (that most people won't even see) is very detailed and my husband works hard to get it just right.
Jesus will perfect our lives and work on the details too!  The Holy Spirit works on  those 'little things' that no one sees...He knows because He built us.  What we may think is unimportant is very important to a builder!

Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith.... (Hebrews 12:2a NIV84)

Builders have a plan...see the finished car and keep it in mind

Heart of a crafstman builders do not give up!  Even when they are working on little sleep and it seems like the project will not get done in time, they persevere and keep the finished car in mind. 

God has a plan for our lives and He never gives up on us!

For I know the plans I have for you, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a future and a hope. Jeremiah 29:11

God is the master builder...He made us and knows us

O Lord, you have searched me

and you know me.

You know when I sit and when I rise;

you perceive my thoughts from afar.

You discern my going out and my lying down;

you are familiar with all my ways.

Before a word is on my tongue

you know it completely, O Lord.

You hem me in—behind and before;

you have laid your hand upon me.

For you created my inmost being;

you knit me together in my mother's womb.

I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;

your works are wonderful,

I know that full well.

My frame was not hidden from you

when I was made in the secret place.

When I was woven together in the depths of the earth,

your eyes saw my unformed body.

All the days ordained for me

were written in your book

before one of them came to be.

Search me, O God, and know my heart;

test me and know my anxious thoughts.

See if there is any offensive way in me,

and lead me in the way everlasting.

Psalm 139:1-5, 13-16, 23, 24 NIV84

cracking eggs?

Do you ever feel fragile?  Like an egg about to crack? 

I have the honor of serving in 'the loop' with the 4th-6th graders.  Last year about this time, Alison, one of the leaders,  had a game prepared that was fun for the kids...but it spoke to me.  Since Easter is near, she brought eggs and had each student try to crack the egg using two fingers and then try with their whole hand....no one was able to break an egg either way. 





You would think that an egg would break...if I drop one cooking it always breaks! When we had each taken a turn trying to crush the egg with our hands, we finally gave up and cracked it on something sharp in the trash can to prove that it was not a boiled egg. (Go ahead and try this yourself...you know you want to!)

We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. 2 Corinthians 4:8-9

We all assumed that the egg would easily break...like we sometimes assume about ourselves (or others) that we are weak, frail, fragile.  But God's marvelous creation of the egg shell surprised us in that it wouldn't break under pressure.

He created us as to be strong and durable when we have Christ in us-the hope of glory! (See Col 1:27)  We now have this light shining in our hearts, but we ourselves are like fragile clay jars containing this great treasure.  This makes it clear that our great power is from God, not from ourselves.  2 Corinthians 4:7

We will not 'crack' or fall apart when we trust in Him to hold us together...the one who trust in Him will never be put to shame(see 1 Peter 2:6)

He is before all things, and in him all things hold together Colossians 1:17

Today, if you feel that you are cracking and falling apart because of the weight of this world...reach out to your creator!  He made you and knows what you can withstand and He will be with you (check out Isaiah 43:2).  He gives rest to the weary!

Take courage in the strength of an egg's shell and know that His power is made perfect in weakness (2 Corinthians 12:9).  When you get tired of trying to withstand the pressure in your own strength, rely on Him- ...the weakness of God is stronger than human strength 1 Corinthians 1:25 b