What are you good at?
What's something you're good at? Maybe you make people laugh, you have good grades, or you're the best soccer player you know. Maybe you’re a really good friend who people can come to when they’re down or a natural leader in your friend group.
Whatever it is, do you believe God can use that gift to make an impact?
Something I've been reflecting on lately is how we all use our unique gifts. When I became a pastor last year, I had a pretty good idea about which of my skills I would use in my job - my speaking abilities, plans I had for the ministry, maybe my worship leading skills. You know, the typical ones you would think a pastor would have.
Little did I know that being fluent in social media or knowing how to edit videos would end up being key to ministry this year because of COVID. The lifestyle blog I ran for 2 years taught me so many things I could use to help create content for our student ministry Instagram, one of the only ways we could consistently connect with students during the early days of lockdown. And to be honest - I was pretty sure that lifestyle blog was doing more harm than good when I stepped away from it.
But, God.
God wants to use every part of us for His Kingdom, not just things we might see as "typical." While being able to lead worship and teach a message are ways we can point people to Jesus, there’s a tiny percentage of people doing that daily or weekly. As Paul is writing to the Roman church about using their gifts, he wrote these words in Romans 12:9-11:
"Don't just pretend to love others. Really love them. Hate what is wrong. Hold tightly to what is good. Love each other with genuine affection and take delight in honoring each other. Never be lazy but work hard and serve the Lord enthusiastically."
If you can use your gift to serve someone else, it's valuable to the Kingdom.
We are called to use the things we are good at to love other people and point them to Jesus. When we view our lives' point to be using everything we are given for Jesus, we get to see God use our gifts in really creative ways. This time in our lives is such a cool reminder of this! We get to discover brand new ways of using our skills because of the unique circumstances.
Are you really good at math? Offer to help someone in your class who you know is struggling, especially with online classes.
Do you love to play soccer? Ask some people in your area if they want to meet up and play (safely!!). So many people are feeling really isolated right now, and as the weather gets nicer, this could be a great way to get people connected to community!
Do you weirdly love grocery shopping (like me)? Find out if there’s anyone in your community who needs help getting groceries right now.
One of my favorite stories in the Bible is the story of Esther. If you haven't read it, READ IT. To make a fantastic story very short, Esther becomes queen of her area and then uses that influence and risks her life to save her people from an evil plot. A verse that's stuck with me, especially during this season, is the second half of Esther 4:14: "Who knows if perhaps you were made queen for just such a time as this?" If I had to guess, most of us wouldn't become a queen or a king anytime soon. But what I do know is God has given us a purpose, and who knows - maybe it was for just such a time as this.
Spend some time this week in prayer and ask God to inspire you to use your gifts for Him in new ways. Our God is a creative God, and he wants to use you to make a difference in the lives of those around you.