What we produce is important, but greater still is who we become in the process. It’s pointless to be on top of the world but lose our soul along the way. We are God’s masterpieces, his artwork – shaped with intentionality and care and not merely for the efficiency of outcomes.
To be sure, it’s meaningless to ace a test in school if we didn’t actually learn the material. The point of school is to shape our minds and character and not just to get the right answer on an exam. We study and work hard to become the educated and wise men that can make a difference in the world around us. While grades are a useful reflection this growth, the grades themselves are not the point.
In the same way, God uses the ups and downs of our life to shape who we are. And we’re not merely trying to find the right answer or formula to make it through. Rather, we’re allowing the journey itself to make us into God’s divine artwork.
This does not mean we cannot learn from others. Part of humility is freely receiving the wisdom others have to offer. But emulating is not the same as mimicking. We’re not taking their “answers” as our own, but we are learning how to recognize and apply universal guiding principles to our own story.
This changes the questions we ask as we navigate life. No longer are we simply concerned with if this is the “right” path or not; we are now more concerned with who we can become on this journey. We are the art that’s being created and not merely God’s tools of production.
What would be different if you saw the ordeals of life as God’s creative workshop – sculpting you into his masterpiece?
Especially for men, who are often taught to measure their worth by performance and outcomes, learning to see our lives as God’s creative workshop changes everything.
