It’s funny when our worldly thinking spills over into our life as it relates to God’s kingdom… Jealousy, insecurity, and a desire for importance? We see someone with fantastic gifting and, sometimes, we think, I wish I could do that!
Paul wrote about it being almost-okay to be envious of
spiritual gifts, but I believe he was being ironic. He was pointing our attention at what was
desirable – what God has to offer, instead of what the world has.
Our tendency is to compare ourselves to others, and it’s not
good. If we think we look good compared
to someone, it’s at their expense, and it’s a temporary fix for our feelings of
insecurity. If we’re down on ourselves
because there’s always someone better, it’s a false sense of humble-ness. Making comparisons give us the feeling that
things aren’t fair; true humility holds God in His right place, the giver of
all things good, in whatever measure He wants to give.
So if God is the one who gives me any spiritual gifting I
might have, my worth as a believer comes from Him who gave it to me, instead of
from me – I had nothing to do with how it was given!
And beyond that, God’s word says that if I want more
gifting, I must use what I have been given (see the parable of the talents in
Matthew 25).
Thinking of the guy who buried what the master gave him in
the ground, I love this from Neil:
Tragically, many people go to the grave with their music still in them,
never contributing to the symphony of God’s work.
Today, I’m going to be thanking God for how He has made me,
and asking Him for wisdom on how to rightly use my gifting.
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