Honed Chisel

In the hands of a master craftsman, the chisel is a useful tool used to shape wood or stone into something of beauty. The chisel is just a sharp, dangerous object and, in the wrong hands, can cause much damage to the self and others. So, the chisel is treated with respect as the user knows the potential for injury if he mishandles it. It is an instrument that needs to be sharp, or it will not be effective. The sharpness of the edge determines how effective the tool is. Once the edge is honed to be sharp and effective, it is protected when not used to keep it sharp. However, it will always need occasional honing to stay sharp, especially on the hardest materials; the edge becomes dull. 

It is the case with the tools we have in our lives, and for many of us, they have laid unused and become rusty or have been misused on the wrong materials, misused, abused, and neglected. So, it is unsurprising that the edge has become dull and needs honing. Tools that have become blunt aren't fit for purpose anymore, and we have allowed our tools, which the Holy Spirit has given us, to fall into disuse or be useless. 

But the Spirit of the Lord is saying that I am bringing the tools I have given you to your recollection once again; I am getting them back into use and honing them to make them fit for purpose. I have put them into the right hands and will show you how to use them.

So submit them to the honing, and I will use them for my glory. Use the tools I have given you to make my kingdom. Use the tools of compassion, hospitality, generosity, gentleness, caring, sacrifice, putting others first, feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, protecting the vulnerable, nursing the sick, bandaging the wounded, and looking after the orphans and the widows.

You have the tools, so allow me to sharpen them so you can use them for my kingdom, says the Lord.

When He marked out the foundations of the earth,

Then I was beside Him as a master craftsman;

And I was daily His delight,

Rejoicing always before Him,

Rejoicing in His inhabited world,

And my delight was with the sons of men. Proverbs 8:29-31