THE NUANCE OF BEING USED | KAIROS GLOBAL | JULY 2026

Author: Jilu Chengat

Intro: Jilu Chengat is a regular contributor to Kairos Global’s theme-based In Focus articles.

Do you desire to be used? In the English language, ‘being used’ typically carries a negative connotation. It assumes that being used equates to being discarded after the intended purpose is complete. Yet, when used by God, there is a potential for transformation and new life. These concepts about the same word directly oppose each other, but often both are lived experiences of humanity. Here, let us ponder the invitation to be used by God and recognise how it differs from a human understanding of being used.

 In a 1989 interview, Mother Teresa responded to a question about her extraordinary work among the poor with the Missionaries of Charity. She strongly states, ‘I don’t claim anything of the work. It is his work. I am like a little pencil in his hand. That is all. He does the thinking. He does the writing. The pencil has nothing to do with it. The pencil has only to be allowed to be used.’ 

Although I aspire to embody her great virtues, I am no Mother Teresa. Yet like her, I claim that I am a little pencil in His hand. I can surely claim that it is He who does the thinking and He who does the writing.  I willingly allow myself to be used because I trust the hands that are using me. In this case, writing for Kairos Global has been an experience of being in the tender hands of God, who carefully and meticulously brings words to life! It has been a beautiful experience to allow myself to be used by God, through this magazine, to bring His work of salvation to those in need. To further understand this reality of being used by God, we may need to reflect on two ideas – the scandal of particularity and the idea of consent. 

Have you paid attention to the fact that God always moves with particularity, even to the point of being scandalous? Throughout salvation history, God revealed Himself to particular people, many times those who were least likely or worthy to receive God’s presence. God is selective in who and how He chooses His work to be accomplished, as we can see in the selection of young David the shepherd, the least of his brothers, to be anointed as king. God was very precise in His selection, and as 1 Samuel 16:7 says, the Lord sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart. David was chosen because the Lord saw his heart and, in time, fashioned a king with the heart of a shepherd. 

It is important to note that the selection of David required another man, the Prophet Samuel, who was even more receptive and responsive to the subtle voice of the Lord. As Pope Benedict XVI writes, ‘God wants to come to men only through other men.’  God was able to come to David through Samuel. Likewise, for a writer to be used well, many have to be in the place of Samuel, listening to the subtle promptings of God’s voice and, in timely ways, bringing forth that truth to reality. Kairos Global has engaged beautifully in this prophetic role. 

My experience of writing with Kairos has been of being seen, not just for my ability to write or meet a deadline, but for my desire to be used as a pencil in the hands of a loving God. For many years, as a young writer, I looked down upon my ‘soft’ writing style. I didn’t know how to express theological ideas or communicate the teachings of the Church, but I did feel called to share my lived experience of these realities. In the beginning, I discounted my style, tone and way as ‘less than.’ Over time, and with practise, I leaned into my particular way. This was received and affirmed, first by God and by others. I knew that my work spoke for me and that it was seen with the eyes of God. Over the years, the selection and offering of various themes as article prompts drew out more of who I was and the writer I was called to be. Engaging in this dynamic process has been both edifying and rewarding. In this way, the dialogue among the editors, magazine team and God through prayer has allowed Kairos to strengthen its prophetic voice and call. 

The second idea revolves around consent. For the word to become flesh, there has to be a certain birthing process. For a writer, that process is usually messy, can be time-consuming or rapid, and highly uncertain until the process is complete. Unlike a sterile, planned delivery, it can be unpredictable. When I have said yes to writing an article, I know that the yes is not just to write words on a page, but to bring life to the words that the Lord places in my heart. These words necessitate conversion, repentance, faith and belief. 

When being a pencil in the hands of the Lord, it is not simply enough that the words exist on a page, but the words must come to life, first in the writer and then, only then, in the reader. There is always a thrill for a writer to see their words in print, to hold the magazine and read the article, but the true gift is the hidden process of birthing and co-creating with God. John 16:21 says, A woman giving birth to her child has pain because her time has come; but when her baby is born she forgets the anguish because of her joy that a child is born into the world. Allowing myself to be used is not just a yes to the final product but consent to the process and journey of conversion that comes through labour pains!  In this way of being used, new life begets more new life. 

To tie these elements together, we can look to the Scripture story of the widow of Zarapeth. The Prophet Elijah comes to this woman as she is preparing a final, meagre meal for her son and herself, certain of their impending death from starvation. Upon Elijah’s insistence, she shares what she has, and for the rest of the drought, the widow, her son, and Elijah were provided for. 

Hopefully, if you read this far, you have realised that being used as a pencil in the hands of God is not strictly limited to the act of writing.  The story of the widow of Zarapeth is our story and the invitation set before each one of us. When the Lord calls us, and prophets (disguised in various forms) ask something of us, even when we can hardly understand, we have the choice to allow ourselves to be used. When we give our consent with whatever little we have, the Lord is the one who provides abundantly. The Lord has called each one of us to be used in a very particular way. When we say yes and allow God to use us in our gifts, abilities and uniqueness, we in turn draw out the call of the other, bringing the kingdom of God from heaven to earth! 

Thank you, Kairos Global, for your role in gathering many to be used by God and allowing many more to receive the goodness of the Lord! 

Jilu Chengat is a wife, mother, missionary, and writer living in Massachusetts, USA, with her husband and four children. Alongside various leadership and ministry roles in Jesus Youth and the Church, her primary passion is accompanying and forming young people and women, helping them grow in freedom, healing, and attentiveness to God’s voice. Like formation, writing has taught her to be attentive to how the Lord desires the Word to become flesh in unique and personal ways. Through her writing, she seeks to live more deeply from her baptismal identity and invites her readers to do the same.