I am just like you before God; I too have been taken from clay. – Job 33:6

Today’s Scripture Reading (April 12, 2012): Job 33

We work hard to set ourselves apart in at least some areas of lives. There is something that we want to be known for. It starts early in life, and as far as I can tell seems to continue until our dying day. And our ego seems to rest on that something. It is one of the reason why working adults often take an ego hit when they lose their jobs – the thing that made them stand out is all in a sudden missing in their lives. It is also the reason why health often seems to decline when unemployment occurs – and it doesn’t matter whether the loss of employment was our idea or someone else’s, the pain is just as real.

But the reality is that no matter how hard we try, we aren’t really all that different. We are maybe put together a little differently, each of us has different strengths and weaknesses, but before God, there is absolutely no difference. Our origins, no matter how hard we work at being different, are all the same. If I was ground down to the essential elements that make up my body, I would be worth about the same as you are (a few measly dollars.) And to steal a line from Star Trek, we are all really just “bags of mostly water.” (The Star Trek quote is “ugly bags of mostly water, but I won’t go there.)

Before God, we stand in an equality that is hard for even our most radical minds to imagine. But in the hands of God all of that changes. We are clay, a mixture of inexpensive chemicals. But our worth doesn’t come from our composition, but rather from what we are willing to let God do with that composition.

Elihu got it right. We are all equal in the eyes of God, but the immense value that we possess is unleashed when we allow God to use us – then we become more than the sum of our parts. Job’s value was not found in his wisdom or even in his faith. It was found in a willingness to simply be the instrument of God on the earth.

       

Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: Job 34