YAY! Today is the first day of the Spiritual Gifts study! And it is Labor Day! So first, happy Labor Day! I hope your day is filled with blessings from our Father in Heaven.
“For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not…….O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death? I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord…” Romans 7:18&24-25
As we begin this Spiritual gifts study I want to begin on this note. Nothing we do is good. Of ourselves there is no good in us. I spent way too many days in previous years:
- trying to measure up
- trying to be good enough
- trying to earn love
- trying to be worthwhile
But the thing is, we will NEVER be good enough on our own. All the expectations we have for ourselves and the way we WANT to live a Christian life, is all good intentions– but it will never give us the hands and feet to actually do it. Our personal efforts toward good works and the pursuit of spiritual gifts will NEVER get us anywhere. We will always end up dry and weary.
However, God alone, not only gives us spiritual gifts, but He also gives us the hands and feet to do them. He is what makes them good enough, worthwhile, and important in building His kingdom because of HIM not us. Not only does He give us the ability to do things we can never do ourselves but he also gives us the ability to run and not be weary, walk and not faint, and SOAR like wings of an eagle! (Isaiah 40:31).
Using our spiritual gifts may not always be easy, but in using them the correct way we will always be filled with a peace that passes understanding because it is from God not us. I pray today, if you are out of energy and feel like you can’t go on, that you will let go of your own expectations and embrace God’s. By His strength alone–not yours. Spiritual gifts are from Him for His glory. When we constantly yield ourselves and our gifts to Him in submission — we will be filled with peace and the knowledge that we can keep going in His strength. That doesn’t mean we wont be discouraged or tired, it means we will have the confidence to face the tasks placed in front of us because we are relying on God’s strength, not our own. It means staring in the face of things we say we can’t do or handle knowing if God calls us to them, we will be able to do them.
My prayer for you as you walk through this study is that you can find your footing in God’s strength and use the gifts He has given you for HIS glory.
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