1 Corinthians 12:7 Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good.

This chapter is one I have studied a great deal, and each verse is very meaningful. The stress on unity in diversity is extremely important, particularly with the recent emphasis on DEI and the like in the US. We can have a hard time with the concept that we are supposed to be one, but we aren’t supposed to be the same. That said, this verse points out that our differences are supposed to be for the benefit of all. Having been an observer of and a participant in the Charismatic Movement since 1973, it is my sad realization that too many people take spiritual gifts as merit badges, either being proud of their own or jealous of what someone else is given. That is a terrible distortion. It is my observation that absolutely everything God gives us is for more than just the direct recipient. That applies even to life itself, because just by being alive we impact those around us. In the message yesterday the Lord said through me that we serve Him through serving the people around us. It follows that the gifts and abilities He gives us aren’t to puff us up, but rather to benefit the people around us. In 14:1 Paul tells us to earnestly desire spiritual gifts, but that is so that we can be useful to God in blessing the people around us. Narcissism is a terrible curse, but all too many people welcome it! Sadly enough, that is true even in the Church. God’s gifts are great blessings to the direct recipients, but that benefit is multiplied when those gifts are exercised as God intends.

This is something I have come to understand more and more over the years. I was blessed a great deal from birth, but those blessings have come to fruition largely to the degree that I have exercised them for the benefit of others. As I tell couples every time I do marriage counseling, selfishness never leads to happiness. This fits in perfectly with a quote of Jesus that Paul reported that isn’t in any of the four Gospels: “It is more blessed to give than to receive.” (Acts 20:35) My task in life is to seek to know Christ and what He wants me to do with all that He has poured out on me, and then to do it with faithfulness and joy. If I will do that, then the blessings will be multiplied to me as well.

Father, thank You for this reminder. I’m rather blown out of the water by all the people who responded so positively to the message You spoke through me yesterday. Help me indeed use everything You give me in the ways You intend, blessing many and drawing them closer to You, for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!