Alignment Before Assignment

Alignment Before Assignment

The prodigal ended up with the bag of gold he demanded. The prodigal (prodigal means “wasteful”) demands and takes what he does not have a metron over and handles it wastefully. A “metron” is a measure of rule or sphere of influence (2Co 10:13-14). When he finished handling what his measure of rule and sphere of influence was not yet fitted for, it was all gone with absolutely nothing to show for all his desires and demands and striving. He had not yet yielded to training that would enable him to handle that particular gift profitably. It’s like trying to haul a dump truck load of dirt in a pickup. The greatest part of the dirt is spilt on the ground and the pickup breaks down under the heavy load it manages to hold. It doesn’t mean that he was never meant to handle bags of gold; it just means that he had not yet been disciplined for that size of metron. A caution to consider is that a person’s gift can take them to a place that their character cannot keep them. A person can manipulate people and work relationships and make others obligated to give them something that they want (e.g., a position, a title, an opportunity). But if it is not within their sphere of influence and ability to handle, it will be wasted. As with this prodigal, prodigals tend to add to their misdemeanours by damaging others on their gift-mishandling spree. 

Paul’s wisdom to young Timothy was to first prove men who desired to be deacons before allowing them to serve tables. (1Tim 3:10, 13) A small child can desire to drive a car but he does not have a measure of rule for it and will damage himself and others, though he may enjoy a great deal of exciting satisfaction before the crash. Some people have gotten what they and their relatives and friends wanted for them in a “ministry” but when it was not within their measure of rule, they crashed and many were damaged. There have been thousands of storefront buildings vacated after a short period of time with church signs over the door for the community to read and shake their heads at. The body of Christ can help identify us and our measure of rule and keep us from shipwreck. To quote Apostle Hodges, it’s  “alignment before assignment.” Were we sent or have we just went?