The Carpenter's tools had a conference. Brother Hammer was in the chair. The meeting had informed him that he must leave, because he was too noisy. "But," he said, "If I am to leave this Carpenter Shop, Brother Gimlet must go too, for he is so insignificant that he makes very little impression."

Little Brother Gimlet arose and said, "All right, but Brother Screw must go along also; you have to turn him around again and again to get him anywhere."

Brother Screw then said, "If you wish I will go, but Brother Plane must leave also. All his work is on the surface, there is no depth to it."

To this Brother Plane replied, "Well, Brother Rule will have to withdraw if I do, for he is always measuring other folks as though he were the only one who is right."

Brother Rule then complained against Brother Sandpaper and said, "I just do not care for him, as he is rougher than he ought to be. He is always rubbing people the wrong way."

Brother Chisel had risen to give a cutting remark, when - in the midst of this discussion, The Carpenter of Nazareth walked into His tool room, for He had come to perform His day's work.

The article that He was completing was a New Creation. He employed the hammer, the gimlet, the screw, the plane, the ruler, the sandpaper, and all the other tools. After the day's work was over and His article completed in perfection, Brother Saw arose and said, "Brethren, I perceive that all of us are labourers together with God."

How many of us as Christians are just like these tools, fussing at others because they do not do things just the way we think they should. There was not one accusation against any of the tools that was not absolutely true; yet the Carpenter of Nazareth used every one of them; and He used each in a place that another would not do at all.

Let us be good tools in the hands of God.

Written by Sr. Burdet, and sent in by a reader.