At Work

"What Is in Thine Hand?": Finding Creative Solutions for Inadequate Resources

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As kids growing up we sometimes complained that we didn’t have what we wanted, or lacked something to get a job done.

The adults in my family had a standard response: “What is that in thine hand?”

This was a reference to the biblical account of God commanding Moses to go to Pharaoh and ask him to free the Israelite slaves.

When Moses complains that he won’t be successful, the Lord responds with a question: “What is that in thine hand?”

Moses answers, “A staff.” God uses the staff to work miracles before Pharaoh. (See Exodus 3:1-4:20 for the account).

The answer to questions about inadequate resources is always, “What do you have to work with? What’s available to you? What’s your creative option?”

The parallel thought process is about your levels of passion and commitment.

What are you willing to focus on?

What are you willing to give up for something better?

What’s worth getting past fears and laziness to achieve?

Let’s not fool ourselves, this could be work.

As a teenager I once commented to my grandfather that I would rely on God to take care of me, because he promised to provide everything I needed.

“Do you remember when Jesus said, ‘Consider the ravens: they neither sow nor reap, they have neither storehouse nor barn, and yet God feeds them. Of how much more value are you than the birds!’?” (This is from Luke 12:24.)

“Yes,” I replied confidently.

“Watch the birds and see how hard they work to find the seeds and insects God provides for them. Here ends the lesson.”

As a leader, you’re never going to have all the resources you might wish for. You’ll always have to make choices. You also get the opportunity to experience the joy that comes from creative solutions and hard work to solve big problems.

This post originally appeared on the Leadership Craft blog. Read it here.

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