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"Maker" (noun):
1. A person or thing that makes or produces something.
2. God; the Creator. (source: OxfordLanguages)
The Maker
For some of you (or your older children), "maker" is a revered term - there is an expanding maker movement, and makers come together in makerspaces to share wisdom, tools, and a storeroom. They display their useful or whimsical creations at Maker Faires (sponsored, naturally, by Make magazine).
Jeremiah 51 tells us that God is the staggeringly-competent original Maker: "It is He who made the earth by His power, Who established the world by His wisdom, and by His understanding He stretched out the heavens" (v. 15, NASB). His only tool was His voice, sending atmospheric water into a tizzy, causing distant cloud eruptions, and bringing out lightning and wind from His storeroom (v. 16).
Men, made in God's image, are also inherently makers. In the Garden, we were commanded to steward, to extend, to flourish - to make. But fallen man's making is badly broken; it inevitably veers toward idolatry, is lifeless (v. 17), and passes away (v. 18). Like the dictionary definition, we get things in the wrong order, with catastrophic results.
Jeremiah concludes with a contrast. Looking through gospel eyes, God's people (the Church) have a different outcome than fallen man: "The portion of Jacob is not like these; for the Maker of all is He, and of the tribe of His inheritance..." (v. 19). Men make idols; in Christ, our Maker God has made all, and specifically made us as His inheritance.
And in Matthew, God gives a new prime directive to us as redeemed makers -- in addition to our vocational Garden mandate, we are to extend the tribe of His inheritance, to "Make disciples" (28:19).
So what does all this have to do with the blind?
 This blind woman is a maker, struggling to make ends meet, particularly during COVID, with her woven work. Her blind husband is also a maker, building a loom for her.
 How do we come alongside folks like these to introduce them to the Maker, call them to make disciples, and assist their vocational making so that they thrive?
Several thoughts:
- I've spent the last month or so learning and talking with three world-class ministries that integrate discipleship and microfinance. The bottom line is that COVID has so rocked their world that they are struggling and not able to take on any new effort with the visually impaired. So we are exploring if we can adapt some of their materials for an internal pilot program with the blind.
- Individual blind folk all over the world are already excelling vocationally in many areas. We want to do a better job of highlighting their stories, skills, and mentorship, as well as building a database of resources for particular skills, like this draft sample.
Would you pray for wisdom in these efforts?
Oh, and what are you making?
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