1 Corinthians 12:28 And God has placed in the church first of all apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healing, of helping, of guidance, and of different kinds of tongues.

We are very quick to rank people, ourselves and others. The problem is, it is God who decides which person has which gifting, job, or what have you. We are to aspire to be available to God for however He wants to use us, and in 1 Corinthians 14:1 Paul urges us to desire to prophesy, but we can’t simply decide what we are going to be on our own. For example, God raises up pastors, but someone deciding on their own that’s what they will be is disastrous, generally for themselves and for those they try to lead. It is sadly true that lots of students in seminaries are cases of “Mama called and Papa sent,” rather than called and appointed by God. You can’t just decide, “I’m going to be a miracle worker,” for example. That one is quickly obvious! The point, as this whole chapter makes clear, is that we are all part of one Body of Christ, no two people have exactly the same gifting and function, and we all need each other. That awareness is vital for training in discipleship, because misunderstanding leads to countless problems. We each need help in understanding who and what God has created us to be, so that we can move into all that God has prepared for us to do, (Ephesians 2:10) for our blessing, the blessing of the people around us, and for His glory.

This is something I’ve come to grasp better and better over the years. I’ve been associated with many gifted people, starting with my parents but extending to many, many others. Some have understood the roles God had for them, but sadly, some have not. I’m very grateful to have gotten to be close to Don and Katie Fortune, who taught very effectively on Motivational Gifts, from Romans 12. That helped me understand myself better, as well as understand the people around me. I’m trying to teach that material to the believers here, but their understanding of the usefulness of that teaching is all over the place. I am gifted as a teacher, but God placed me in the role of pastor, and I didn’t like it! It was training in the reality that I’m totally dependent on God. If I can get by on my gifting, I tend to think I can do the job on my own, and that is the height of stupidity. I am to use the gifts God has given me in full obedience and dependence on Him, as a faithful steward, so that God’s purposes may be accomplished in and through me, for His glory alone.

Father, thank You for this reminder. Thank You for the things You have yet for me to do. I don’t know what they all are, by any means, but I want to fulfill Your purposes for me, on Your schedule, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!