God's Workmanship

"For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do."
Ephesians 2:10

When I realize that we are God's workmanship, it makes me think of a skilled craftsman who creates an incredibly beautiful piece of art with his own hands. I can picture God knitting a person together to become exactly what he had pictured all along. Dear ones, that is who we are! We were not haphazardly thrown together. No, we were carefully planned and perfectly created. Once we realize this, we have to understand that God did not create us just so he could look at us. He created us to do things. You and I are called to do good things for God.
    One basic principle is ingrained in all people. Everyone who has gone before us, all who are alive today, and all who will live after us, have the reality built into their spirits that there is good and evil. Thus, whether they choose to acknowledge it or not, all people have an understanding that there is a God and a devil. Since we are Christians, we are called to do good works. We do the things that mirror his nature. He is good and we manifest that goodness to the world in which we live. I fear that there are those who will say that I am promoting a legalistic lifestyle. I am not. But we were hand selected by God himself, to go and DO good works. Because he is good, we are good. Because he does good things, we do good things. This makes perfect sense when we realize that the word 'Christian' literally means 'little Christs.' We do the same things he did.
    There is no fear in doing these good things. God prepared them for you long before you even existed. He knows your strengths because he gave you those strengths. he knows your gifts and talents because he gave them to you. He also knows the good things that you will do. God not only works in and through you, he is working to prepare situations, relationships, and appointments that are designed to give you the opportunity to do his good works.
    Friends, this is who we are, who we are called to be, and what we are called to do. You are not an accident, nor is what you are called to do. It has all been planned in advance. You are in Christ Jesus, so do the things that he did. God is good all the time, and we are presenting him to the world.