I was scanning the Internet the other day when I came across an article about a motorcycle that had been found by a group of guys over in Germany rummaging around in an old warehouse. The bike, as it was later discovered, was an old concept bike, dubbed the M7, which BMW had developed back in the mid 1930’s. When 1937 rolled around, German auto manufacturers found themselves producing Stukas, half-tracks, and Panzers instead of sedans and coupes. Many, like BMW, hurriedly put into storage everything that was of value to the futures of their companies; the things they would use to build bright futures if ever they found a way out of the war. The M7 was one of those valued items; it was a work of mechanical art, more sculpture than machine. It was a vision of the future that BMW engineers brought to life, but before their creation could make an impact on the world it was unceremoniously crated up and sent to a warehouse. Remarkably, it was sent to one of the few warehouses that were left untouched by Allied bombing and remained there for decades. When the M7 was rediscovered, the once beautiful lines and flowing forms of the dream bike had nearly succumbed to the onslaught of humidity and time. The men knew that they had found something unique, but it was so degraded that they had little hope it would ever be a fraction of the beauty it had once been. Thankfully they did not give up on the treasure that had been forgotten. Today, after a careful and extensive restoration process, we are able to marvel at the beauty that its creators had envisioned. Even by today’s standards, this is a beautiful piece of art. It’s the kind of bike many of us would proudly put on the road.
Can you imagine how the designers of this bike must have felt knowing that their creation would never get a chance to have its intended effect on the world? How hard must it have been to for them to enclose that unique creation in a box, knowing it would never again see the light of day? You’d think this story was a once in a lifetime tale, right? The sad truth is that it happens every day. Every day one of God’s very own takes the gifts with which he has been blessed by an all-powerful God and buries them in a deep dark hole. Every day one of God’s followers takes a talent with which she has been uniquely gifted by an all-knowing God and hides it away from everyone around her. Some hide their gifts because they’re scared of what others will say about them. Some hide them because they’re afraid of how others will treat them. Some hide their gift because they’re fearful that they will fail to live up to others’ expectations of how that gift should be used. Whatever the reason, that same all knowing, all-powerful, all-loving God watches His beloved creation doubt the love that He has for him or her. He watches as the wonderful gifts He gave to them are relegated to the shadows to collect dust and rust. He watches as His children allow fear and doubt to keep them separated from His blessings.
If you think, as I do, that the bike in the picture is a thing of amazing beauty, how much more beautiful are the followers of God when they are obediently blessing others with the gifts that God gave them to share with the world.
