“I call it the law of the instrument, and it may be formulated as follows: Give a small boy a hammer, and he will find that everything he encounters needs pounding.” - Abraham Kaplan, 1964

With 4 boys at home, this “law” holds true every day. Sometimes it’s entertaining. Sometimes productive. Other times destructive. (Boys are hard on things, as I once was... and sometimes still am.) The idea behind this phenomenon is usually used in a negative way to explain a cognitive bias that involves an over-reliance on a familiar tool. Abraham Maslow (the “hierarchy of needs” guy) phrased it a bit differently when he said, “I suppose it is tempting, if the only tool you have is a hammer, to treat everything as if it were a nail.” As we’ve learned in our home, not everything needs the attention of a hammer (or a machete).

Scripture is full of construction analogies. There are some about building, others about a good foundation, the importance of a cornerstone, etc. For me, these especially resonate due to my enjoyment of building things. They also help simplify complex, spiritual concepts. For example, the fact that we are all one in Christ:

So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit. - Ephesians 2:19-22 ESV

What if we thought about the “law of the instrument” in a positive way? If you have something that needs pounding, give a small boy a hammer. This is just what my dad did when hundreds of nails on a porch were sticking up. He gave my boys some hammers and the problem was solved.

I may be stepping out beyond what the analogy will allow, but I have been in situations where I needed a hammer and didn’t have one. Suddenly, the {insert non-hammer tool here} became a poor substitute. Each of us have various gifts that can meet specific needs and activities (1 Cor 12:4-6). How valuable it is when there is a need in the church, and there is someone who can fulfill it!

As we are being built together (Eph 2:22) and are building one another up (2 Thes 5:11), let us all use our talents (hammer) to meet the needs in front of us. Especially while we’re apart, don’t hide your talent away in a toolbox (Matt 25:24-25), but search for someone to help.

Not everything needs the attention of a hammer, but when you need a hammer, the hammer is an invaluable tool. Figure out what your “hammer” (talent / gift / service) is and actively look for a nail.