The Chosen Instrument

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As can often be the case, one of the low points of my Christian life came immediately after a spiritual high. At the time I was playing guitar for a praise team and we had just finished leading some riveting worship as a guest band for a neighboring local church.

A longtime business client of mine who was a regular attendee of the church came up to me right afterwards and with much enthusiasm shared, “Wow. That was so great to see you up there. I didn’t know you were a Christian.” (Yes. You could actually hear the air surging out of my high and holy balloon.)

His intention was purely to be encouraging, but I believe God used him to speak words of painful truth into my life. Here was an important client of mine who I interacted with frequently and he had no idea I was a Christian! What a terrible job I was doing of sharing my faith through my actions and words.

One of the most memorable moments in the Bible is the story of Apostle Paul’s dramatic conversion in Acts of the Apostles. On the road to Damascus, Paul (who was known as Saul as well) had been blinded in his life-changing encounter with a resurrected Jesus Christ. Later, a godly man named Ananias was directed by the Lord to visit Paul and assist in healing his vision.

Ananias was understandably surprised at the request and he protested mildly. After all, Paul was one of the most nefarious persecutors of the early church at the time. The response to his initial reluctance was both powerful and revealing in this passage from Acts.

But the Lord said to Ananias, “Go! This man is my chosen instrument to carry my name before the Gentiles and their kings and before the people of Israel. I will show him how much he must suffer for my name.”
Acts 9:15

 What is revealed to Ananias is that regardless of our past, as followers of Christ, we are “chosen instruments” of the Lord. The Greek can be translated in a number of ways and in some translations it reads “chosen vessels.” Regardless, it clearly means we are meant to be used to share the message of Christ with those around us and we are carefully selected to fill this role. I believe seeing ourselves as a chosen musical instrument is both Biblically accurate and very helpful in understanding our role.

 Our purpose, through God’s leading, is to play beautiful music of hope and redemption to a world sorely in need of light in the darkness. When my client shared his piercing comment to me it was clear that my lamp of witness was at best a dull flickering flame.

 So how do we ignite the fires of truth and maximize our opportunity to be a beautiful instrument in the hands of the Living God? Here are ways shared with us in His word:

Availability
For God to use us, we must be available to him. We must be willing to serve Him at any time His heart desires. I have found opportunities for the greatest miracles often arrive at the most inopportune moments. It will be during a busy day at work when a call comes from a friend in need and I hear that voice inside saying, “You need to put everything else aside.” It will be times when speaking before a room of unbelievers I will hear, “Tell them about Me.” We must be willing to play our music beyond the safe confines of Sunday mornings and learn to be comfortable playing in front of difficult audiences and in the midst of challenging circumstances.

In Tune
For us to play beautiful music for God, we must be in tune with our Master’s desires. To do this, we must know Him at an intimate level. Fortunately, God wrote a book! It’s our time in the Word, in prayer and in quiet time that we can build our relationship with Him and align ourselves with His will for our lives.

Commitment
Serving God isn’t about reaching the “top of the charts” or being a “one hit wonder.” It’s a lifetime of unselfish devotion. If we rely on His strength and direction, we will never be “burned out” or lose our desire to share His name. The enemy will certainly want us to fail and reveal us to be hypocrites before those who see us as an example of faithfulness. We must not let the dust to settle, the brass to tarnish or the bow to wear. The music God performs through us should be a lifelong crescendo growing in eloquence and power as we finish the race well.

In Concert
There are no star performers when it comes to serving the Lord. It is only through humility that we can achieve our greatest calling. This willingness to play a small part in a larger symphony will be critical in allowing us to really reach our heights of performance. If we are “faithful in little things” and encourage and work closely with other believers we can be part of something much larger than anything we could accomplish alone.

 Shall We Join The Band?
In the Christian life, victory begins with surrender. The Stradivarius is merely wood, strings and unfilled potential without the hands of the Master violinist. We must be willing to lay down our fears and misconceptions about sharing our faith and embrace the fact that there will be suffering in His name.

But what small price to pay to be part of a masterpiece designed to change lives forever!

As we begin each day, we must declare ourselves ready and willing to play His music. We are no longer merely attorneys, contractors, business owners, homemakers, teachers or waiters. No. We are “Chosen Instruments” of God.

Let the music play.