Messy Hands

I was looking at my hands, and they are a mess! For starters, they are sweaty and the sweat does a marvelous job of mixing with the dust that is everywhere to form mud. Then, of course, there is some grease and a little bit of paint dotting my fingers and the creases of my palms where it just won't wash out. Add to that the blotchy dots where my skin is reacting to the soap I’ve been using and the blister from the digging work I was doing today and it is more than apparent that my hands are a mess.
One of my favorite worship songs is a beautiful Spanish song that talks about offering our hands and our lives to the Lord because he is precious to us. I was listening to that song and looked at my hands and all I could think was – what a mess! As I was thinking that, it also struck me that it was a great analogy for the rest of my life. I come to Jesus and I am a mess just like my hands are. But I come anyway because he didn’t come to save perfect people but messed up people. He doesn’t even use perfect people to do his work but builds his kingdom on the offering of our messy lives for his service. That is a huge comfort to me.
My time here in this part of Sudan is quickly drawing to a close. I am planning on leaving here in mid-March and where I go from here is still uncertain which can be a bit daunting. What the journey looks like from here is far from certain but I am confident that the King will be able to take these messy hands of mine and use them for something noble and true that builds up his Kingdom. Sometimes I look at my hands, or my life, and I wonder what purpose they will be used for, especially in their current state. It is a good thing I serve a creative King who has a use for me!