We begin this new series we have lovingly called, “RUN!” This is not meant as a warning of the future or a bad fire drill or re-enactment from the movie, Mar’s Attacks. It’s actually not about running away from anything. It’s really a reference to a piece of scripture from the book of Hebrews in which the writer encourages the audience to persevere in being a Christian in the world. The life of a Christian is simple but it’s not easy. This is where a friend and I often talk about the “bait and switch” strategy of some Christian churches. They tell you about Jesus, his saving action on your behalf and the peace, joy, hope and love that stems from the relationship but then they stop. They fail to tell you that by accepting Christ as your Savior, you will be at odds with the culture and that you will be confronted with decisions, marked by obedience which will be followed by actions that actually declare or deny your faith.
It’s a small moment of tension in the indecision that leads big declarations.
I am confronted with this tension often in my personal life. You see, I wasn’t always a preacher/teacher/Pastor – a paid good guy. I was striving for success at all cost kind of a guy. I worked hard. I played hard. I tried to get the world before it could get me. However, when I met Jesus that selfish and self-centered me began to disappear. It has been a slow refining process. I am still learning. I know that because occasionally when I am overly hungry, angry, lonely, tired or sad, I revert back to the full metal Bob. It’s still a default mode. I know when I fall into it because of my behavior when I am driving. The best way to say it is, “I am more vocal about other people’s ability to drive.” I think it was the late George Carlin who said, “Anyone who drives faster than you is a crazy and anyone going slower than you is an idiot.” When those actions begin in my car, I know I have fallen into the worldly Bob and I am no longer living out the gifts God gave me for His glory, even if I am using my gift of preaching.
The benefit I have is that I know my gifts. I know there are plenty of people who claim they don’t know their gifts or talents or even skills so they sit on the sideline. There are others who say they don’t have any gifts or talents or skills. As a result neither group does anything: the first group because they are claiming ignorance, the second because of a lack of worthiness. Both groups fail to realize God was involved in their creation, currently involved in their development and is encouraging their development so He can use them because they are uniquely qualified. There are hundreds of books, studies and evaluations on gifts and talents. They all can be helpful. However, if you really want to know your gifts – ask a loved one or a trusted friend. Who better to ask than someone you feel has your best interest at heart? If you want to verify the information, ask a couple of good friends and compare the notes. If you want to know your talent or passion, start asking yourself after every daily activity if the activity gave you energy or drained it. Finally, if you want to know your skills, take a look at the kind of activities you often find yourself doing. Chances are these are skills you have learned along the way. Skills are but learned actions. I had a perfect example of how this works during the week. It has been another crazy transition week but in the middle, a person I really like who is often brutally honest came and told me about two situations in which I really helped the person I was with because the person was raving about the self discovery that happened because of my questioning. I learned I have a talent and a passion for meeting new people. On Tuesday and Wednesday, I hung out at the Oswego Panther’s soccer tryouts handing out flyers and picking up soccer gear. It was awesome. I met the directors and some of the parents. I drove away each night totally energized. I could barely contain my excitement. I also realized after talking to a new friend that while I don’t like going up to completely strangers, I do have a skill I learned from my business life of being able to share information quickly and gauge interest. It was great.
? What do people say are your gifts?
? What gives you energy?
? What have you learned in the past that you do well?
Now, this shouldn’t take all that long. It’s not complicated: Ask, Evaluate, Review. And then pray to God about where you should deploy. When the apostle Paul was writing to the church plant that had gone wild in his first letter in the 12 chapter, he said “Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good.” In writing this, he is reminding us of two facts: 1) all of your gifts, talents and skills are given by Him and 2) the purpose you have those gifts, talents and skills is for the expanse of the Kingdom or love one another.
It reminds me of a story. There was a pediatrician and his wife who taught together on Sunday morning. One Sunday my wife had prepared a lesson on being useful. She taught the children that everyone can be useful—that usefulness is serving God, and that doing so is worthy of honor. The kids quietly soaked up my wife's words, and as the lesson ended, there was a short moment of silence. [A little girl named] Sarah spoke up. "Teacher, what can I do? I don't know how do to many useful things." Not anticipating that kind of response, my wife quickly looked around and spotted an empty flower vase on the windowsill. "Sarah, you can bring in a flower and put it in the vase. That would be a useful thing."Sarah frowned. "But that's not important." "It is," replied my wife, "if you are helping someone." Sure enough, the next Sunday Sarah brought in a dandelion and placed it in the vase. In fact, she continued to do so each week. Without reminders or help, she made sure the vase was filled with a bright yellow flower, Sunday after Sunday. When my wife told our pastor about Sarah's faithfulness, he placed the vase upstairs in the main sanctuary next to the pulpit. That Sunday he gave a sermon on the honor of serving others, using Sarah's vase as an example. The congregation was touched by the message, and the week started on a good note. … The call, the visit, the bad news, the less than 6 months, the final visit to church…. Four days later, Sarah died. … I wasn't expecting it, but our pastor asked to see me after the funeral. We stood at the cemetery near our cars as people walked past us. In a low voice he said, "Dave, I've got something you ought to see." He pulled out of his pocket the piece of paper that Sarah had left by the vase. Holding it out to me, he said, "You'd better keep this; it may help you in your line of work." I opened the folded paper to read, in pink crayon, what Sarah had written: Dear God, This vase has been the biggest honor of my life. Sarah (Adapted…CT/march 2008)
“Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good.”
The first part of that statement is easy to understand. We didn’t create ourselves. God did and so there must be a purpose to that action and our existence. We are not present in this realm for the pursuit of happiness. While it’s an American ideal, it’s not God’s. It doesn’t mean we won’t experience happiness, it’s not the goal. It’s a by-product. The second becomes more difficult for folks because for some reason we read expanse of the Kingdom or the common good to mean at church or only for the church and that is simply not the case. The use of one’s gifts, talents and skills are to be used to bring others to knowledge of Jesus Christ and hopefully, an interest in knowing the hope within you and then into the body of Christ to build up so the cycle of deployment continues.
We have been doing this for some time here at Wheatland. It’s amazing to watch folks come in, get fired up and then move into the world. I know it’s critical to our success. We have deployed people into the nursing homes, park district programs and even public office. It’s always inspiring. We have also deployed just as many into the work place, the neighborhood, the soccer, the baseball, and softball clubs. The key again is intent. We deploy into the world recognizing our intention is to represent Christ by the use of our gifts, talents and skills. The impact is up to God. Our challenge is to deploy. Will you?
https://communitycenter.life/rev-robert-butler-info
FULL ILLUSTRATION:
Pediatrician David Cerqueira shares a story of how a dying girl showed his church the honor of serving God:
One Sunday my wife had prepared a lesson on being useful. She taught the children that everyone can be useful—that usefulness is serving God, and that doing so is worthy of honor. The kids quietly soaked up my wife's words, and as the lesson ended, there was a short moment of silence. [A little girl named] Sarah spoke up. "Teacher, what can I do? I don't know how do to many useful things."
Not anticipating that kind of response, my wife quickly looked around and spotted an empty flower vase on the windowsill. "Sarah, you can bring in a flower and put it in the vase. That would be a useful thing."
Sarah frowned. "But that's not important."
"It is," replied my wife, "if you are helping someone."
Sure enough, the next Sunday Sarah brought in a dandelion and placed it in the vase. In fact, she continued to do so each week. Without reminders or help, she made sure the vase was filled with a bright yellow flower, Sunday after Sunday. When my wife told our pastor about Sarah's faithfulness, he placed the vase upstairs in the main sanctuary next to the pulpit. That Sunday he gave a sermon on the honor of serving others, using Sarah's vase as an example. The congregation was touched by the message, and the week started on a good note. …
During that same week I got a call from Sarah's mother. She worried that Sarah seemed to have less energy than usual and that she didn't have an appetite. Offering her some reassurances, I made room in my schedule to see Sarah the following day. After Sarah had a battery of tests and days of examinations, I sat numbly in my office, Sarah's paperwork on my lap. The results were tragic. [She had leukemia.]
On the way home, I stopped to see Sarah's parents so that I could personally give them the sad news. Sarah's genetics and the leukemia that was attacking her small body were a horrible mix. Sitting at their kitchen table, I did my best to explain to Sarah's parents that nothing could be done to save her life. I don't think I have ever had a more difficult conversation than the one that night. …
Time pressed on. Sarah became confined to bed and to the visits that many people gave her. She lost her smile. She lost most of her weight. And then it came: another telephone call. Sarah's mother asked me to come see her. I dropped everything and ran to the house. There she was, a small bundle that barely moved. After a short examination, I knew that Sarah would soon be leaving this world. I urged her parents to spend as much time as possible with her.
That was a Friday afternoon. On Sunday morning church started as usual. The singing, the sermon—it all seemed meaningless when I thought of Sarah. I felt enveloped in sadness. At the end of the sermon, the pastor suddenly stopped speaking. His eyes wide, he stared at the back of the church with utter amazement. Everyone turned to see what he was looking at. It was Sarah! Her parents had brought her for one last visit. She was bundled in a blanket, a dandelion in one little hand.
She didn't sit in the back row. Instead she slowly walked to the front of the church where her vase still perched by the pulpit. She put her flower in the vase and a piece of paper beside it. Then she returned to her parents. Seeing little Sarah place her flower in the vase for the last time moved everyone. At the end of the service, people gathered around Sarah and her parents, trying to offer as much love and support as possible. I could hardly bear to watch.
Four days later, Sarah died. …
I wasn't expecting it, but our pastor asked to see me after the funeral. We stood at the cemetery near our cars as people walked past us. In a low voice he said, "Dave, I've got something you ought to see." He pulled out of his pocket the piece of paper that Sarah had left by the vase. Holding it out to me, he said, "You'd better keep this; it may help you in your line of work."
I opened the folded paper to read, in pink crayon, what Sarah had written:
Dear God,This vase has been the biggest honor of my life. Sarah
Sarah's note and her vase have helped me to understand. I now realize in a new way that life is an opportunity to serve God by serving people. And, as Sarah put it, that is the biggest honor of all.
David Cerqueira, "Sarah's Vase," Today's Christian (March/April 2008); adapted from Evangel magazine (December 2005)
