Your Place in God’s Art

God gifted Bezalel and Oholiab with brilliant skills for building His tabernacle (Exodus 35). But the true Architect, the supreme Artist is the Lord Himself. He continues His work today with even greater skill. For He is building the ultimate temple— “the dwelling place for God by His Spirit” (Ephesians 2:22). Yes, He “works all things according to the counsel of His will” and we are “His workmanship” (Ephesians 1:11; 2:10).

We marvel at the honor of being woven into God’s magnificent tapestry, designed before creation began. Alone, each of us is a frail fiber. Joined to Jesus and each other, we form a cord that cannot easily be broken (Ecclesiastes 4:12).

Woven together by the Master’s hand, we emerge as His grand masterpiece. With Paul, another chief of sinners, we ask, “Who is sufficient for these things?” Then we receive the answer: “Not that we are sufficient in ourselves to claim anything as coming from us, but our sufficiency is from God” (2 Corinthians 3:5 cf. 2:16). This book shares true stories that illustrate God’s tapestry. Since His artwork is ongoing, we have yet to see the full picture. But we see glimpses of His providence at work, interlacing times and lives, even across generations and continents. He brought together Philip and the Ethiopian (Acts 8), and He still links helpers with seekers. He used Paul to plant in Corinth, then He sent Apollos to water (1 Corinthians 3), and He still coordinates His team—whether teammates know it or not. This sort of teamwork is evident in all effective outreach, including World Bible School, which celebrates 50 years of world impact. Like Paul and Apollos, we workers are not “anything” (1 Corinthians 3:7). But transforming grace makes us “God’s fellow workers” (1 Corinthians 3:9). While we participate, we get to watch God at work!

This book opens the imagination to what Jesus can do through you. That is the point of Hebrews 13:8: “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.” The same Jesus who blessed our heroes blesses us today. His authority commissions us, and His presence empowers us now and until the end (Matthew 28:18, 20). As He was with others before us, He is with us now. Do you feel like a bare strand, weak and useless? Let the Master weave you into the strong fabric of His mission team. Rely on His design, His wisdom, and His strength rather than your own. Let His Spirit convict through His living and active Word.

Watch with amazement the picture He produces. Wonder at what the Lord does though you, even if all you have is a mustard seed of faith. “Truly, I say to you, if you have faith like a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, Move from here to there, and it will move, and nothing will be impossible for you” (Matthew17:20). What an adventure! These stories are about God using weak people—just like us— “to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us” (2 Corinthians 4:7).