We are instruments only God can fine-tune

I have been doing some reading in an unusual book.

We have some of the “Foxfire” book series on our bookshelves in the den.

The books in this group are an accumulation of the people’s ideas, ways of doing things, tips for cooking and canning and just general knowledge that was passed down through the people in the Appalachian Mountains of Northeast Georgia.

What started out as a quarterly magazine in 1972 named “Foxfire” now has become a series of books.

These books give much information on the way of life of these northern Georgia residents. I was amazed and fascinated as I sat and dug out information that I doubt can be found anywhere else.

In the “Foxfire Book 3,” there is a section on making musical instruments that are in the family of banjos and dulcimers. The author maintained that different kinds of woods bring about the sound the banjo or dulcimer will produce.

The instrument maker, who was giving all these instructions, had used a variety of woods, including apple, red elm oak, cedar, birch, beech, pecan, sassafras, butternut, walnut, cherry and maple. He detailed in the chapter how to pick the right wood in the dense, thick, snake-infested Appalachian Mountains.

This author made an important distinction in this chapter about dulcimers and banjos and the kinds of woods he uses to make them. He noted that the wood is not the vital thing. The most important thing was the construction of the instrument.

The author contended that he can make music with any kind of wood, as long as he is the builder of that instrument. In other words, a beautiful instrument may not make beautiful music. It solely depends on the builder of the instrument.

That statement has ramifications for many areas of all our lives. We are all guilty at one time or another about sizing up people based on looks, money, where they live and what make of car they drive. Too many times we look at the outside of a person or what a person possesses and fail to think about what is on the inside.

On the other hand, many times we can be stunned when despicable behavior, vulgar language and vile acts come from someone we thought from all appearances was just the opposite.

The Bible has much to say about this issue. When Samuel was instructed by God to choose a new king for Israel, God instructed him: “The Lord does not look at the things that man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance but the Lord looks at the heart.” (1 Samuel 16:7)

Everyone thought that the Pharisees in the New Testament were the epitome of holiness and dedication. The Pharisees had many people fooled but when Jesus looked at the Pharisees, he saw their hearts.

In Matthew 23, there is an account of Jesus admonishing the Pharisees. He called them hypocrites, blind guides, snakes, brood of vipers, and whitewashed tombs. He said they were whitewashed tombs that looked beautiful on the outside but inside they were full of dead men’s bones. (Verse 27)

They looked wonderful on the outside but were rotten on the inside.

Truthfully, only the Lord sees our actions as related to what is in our hearts. “All the ways of a man are clean in his own sight, But the Lord weighs the motives.” (Proverbs 16:2)

The Lord knows the motives of all our actions. That is an overwhelming thought and should cause each of us to weigh our motives before the Lord.

Christ also knows our deepest feelings and purposes, the secrets of our hearts. The Psalmist wrote: “Would not God find this out? For he knows the secrets of the heart.” (Psalm 44:21)

We can hide many things from many people but nothing is kept secret from God.

That “Foxfire” writer was accurate; it is the construction that counts. Spiritually, it is the construction of our inner selves, that honed by God that counts.

CS Lewis wrote: “As long as you are proud you cannot know God. A proud man is always looking down on thing and people: and, of course, as long as you are looking down you cannot see something that is above you.”

When our inner most being is totally reliant upon God, only then can we be fine-tuned, beautiful and useful instruments for him.

Judy Brandon writes about faith for The Eastern New Mexico News. Contact her at: [email protected]