Work within your GIFTS

I've found the older I get, the slower I get.  Not only physically, but brain connections seem to be a bit slower, too!  God speaks to me through words, and the word that I've finally gotten the connection to is GIFTS.  I say "finally" because God has given me this word since April & it's just now dawning on me that He's been trying to speak to me! 

In April, Alex and I went to a teen conference called Revolve.  The shirts that were made for us claim we are "Favored, created with special advantages or gifts".  The verse on the back of the shirt is Romans 12:6 " We all have different gifts that God has given to us by His loving favor.  We are to use them."

So, then in May our church was working on a big banquet to raise money for our building fund.  I was on the decorating and set up team.  I was working under someone who is highly gifted in those sorts of things!  She showed us how to put on the table linens and fold the napkins in this super cute way.  I quickly picked up how to fold these napkins.  Easy for me.  My friend, Lea, on the other hand, could not quite get the hang of folding these napkins.  But what she was good at was lining up the place settings.  Sounds silly and simple, but isn't that how life is?  Work within the gifts you have.  Don't try and fold napkins if you are good at something else. 

So, here's where things start to click with me.  I'm doing my bible reading (which I am sorely behind in, but that's okay!!)  and it is talking about the giftedness of certain people to build the temple in 1 Chronicles.  My church has recently began the building process on our long-awaited building.  I find it "ironic" that we have so many gifted people in our church right now to help build the temple.  We have an architect, who has drafted all the plans for us; a painter, an interior designer, several contractors/carpenters, those who work at specific businesses that are donating items to the church.  I just find it amazing that God brought all those people together at such a time as this to all use their gifts for the building of His temple. 

All of this has been teaching me to stop trying to be good at EVERYTHING.  That truly wears me out.  But it has taught me to just start focusing on what I am gifted at doing.  Hand off everything else to people who are gifted in things where I am weak.  That's how the body of Christ works.  God has chosen me to do my part in building His Kingdom.  I don't have to do it all on my own.  (This is a lesson that I've been needing to learn for MANY years!)  I am highly favored and gifted! 

This verse sums it all up for me.  1 Chronicles 28:9-10 "And Solomon, my son, learn to know the God of your ancestors intimately.  Worship and serve him with your whole heart and a willing mind.  For the Lord sees every heart and knows every plan and thought.  If you seek him, you will find him.  But if you forsake him, he will reject you forever.  So, take this seriously.  The Lord has chosen you to build the Temple as his sanctuary.  Be strong, and do the work."

Redeemed

I have SO many things I want to write about.  I haven't blogged since May because life has just gotten so busy.  Summer has taken over!  I'll just have to find time to write about all the things flooding my mind.  But today, I'm going to pick the most recent thing. 

I've been in ministry now for almost 6 years.  I love my job working with children.  Most days are fun, some days are not so fun.  But God is there in all the days, so it's all good.  I work for God, and He's an awesome boss.  Some days I lose sight of the fact that He's who I work for.  It's those days that make ministry unbearable.  I recently had one of those days of unbearable-ness.  Is that a word?  Because that's how I felt.  All of a sudden I felt that nothing made sense, nothing was working properly, I was a failure, unworthy of my position, etc.  Everything came crashing down on me. 

It's not that I'm prideful about my job, but I do take my job very seriously.  Statistics show that if a person does not accept Christ by the age of 12, they'll have a hard time in adulthood making sense of His existence.  The way a child is treated in church will determine if that child continues going to church as a teen/adult.  A lot rides on children's ministry.  That's why I have an awesome prayer warrior who upholds this ministry in prayer and prays away any evil influence on it.  The spiritual warfare is great for children's pastors and their ministry. 

I don't run my ministry, God does.  It's God who floods my mind with great ideas, object lessons, games, etc, to help kids see Him.  I'm just His hands and feet.  I'm an emptied out tool that allows God to use me to reach kids.  Sunday, I let someone talk to me in a way that made me feel that instead of a warrior, I was a failure.  I let this person take my self-esteem from me and trample it.  It did not feel good. 

My self-esteem and my worth come solely from Christ and the way He sees me.  He sees me as perfect and redeemed.  Wholly beautiful, valuable, and flawless.  God wants me to stop trying to make my ministry great, because He has already done that.  Stop trying to DO everything, and just relish in the fact that the war is already won.  Christ has already DONE everything that needs to be done.  I just have to give it to Him every week and allow Him to use me as He sees fit.  I am redeemed.  I've been set free.