My dad had a toolbox to conquer any issue that came his way. Even the most avid enthusiast would drool over the shiny red chest filled with instruments to solve any problem. And I was his helper. “Mr. Fix-It Man!” my mom would call out, and he’d show up carrying the over-sized box full of treasures. At the time, it didn’t occur to me he was any different from any other dad. Didn’t everyone have the ability to fix everything? It wasn’t until later in life that I realized how blessed we were to have him. From electrical issues to mechanical issues to squeaking doors, my dad was on it.
Most of his gadgets came from research. Back then we didn’t have access to what we have now. A simple Google search and YouTube video and we’re in business; but, for him, it was reading and collecting magazines and books. It was television shows on PBS. It was growing up on a farm and listening to what his dad did and his dad’s dad did.
I remember one Saturday morning in particular, he and I were replacing the electrical fencing on the hog’s pen. I acted as his surgical assistant. He would stick out his hand and murmur the words of what he needed; I would find the exact tool, and pop it in his hand; and we could quickly or not-so-quickly repair just about anything. As he was working, he asked me, “Bug, do you know why it is important to know how to fix things?”
The question seemed simple enough, although I didn’t really have an answer.
He wiped the sweat dripping from his brow and looked up from where he was kneeling, “Because when we are prepared, nothing can ever really keep us out of commission for long.”
I shifted my weight from one foot to the other, listening intently.
“My granddaddy told me when I was about your age, the Bible is the same way. If you know what God’s answers are, you can prevent and repair just about anything that comes your way.”
The answers are there, we just have to study them and know them.
Jeremiah 29:13 tells us, “You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.” The scripture comes on the heels of the one most people know and memorize, “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”
We tend to stop at verse 11 content and confident that everything will work out; but when we read a bit further, we understand what it is we have to do – seek Him and find Him using ALL our heart.
The answers are there for those who earnestly research and learn His word.
Today, I challenge you to study God’s Word so that your toolbox, like my dad’s, is filled with what you need to conquer any issue that comes your way.
