Yesterday was a day full of gifts. At church the pastor preached through Romans 12:3-8, a passage which covers spiritual gifts. Later that afternoon I spent time visiting with friends and family from home. They informed me that their church covered spiritual gifts as well. It was an uneventful day. Perfect weather outside, yet too much snow still on the ground to really take advantage. So I did what any normal college student does...ignored my homework. I decided to go to chapel last night, and guess what? More spiritual gifts! Maybe it is all coincidence, but I doubt it. I try not to think of the God I serve and worship as one of happenstance.
Leaving church yesterday I left with a sort of worried feeling. What my pastor had said was spot-on. That was a problem. While covering the topic of teaching he had us turn to Ephesians 4:11-12 which says, "and he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ". This shouldn't be a scary thing, right? I am just a student. I am no teacher or evangelist. Or maybe that is the problem.
I did a fairly good job of ignoring this whole thing until chapel, when it came up for the third time. So I started to ponder the real question at the heart of this issue. Am I helping or hindering the building up of the body? If I start to look at life through this lens more often maybe I won't miss an opportunity to share the gospel next time. Or maybe I will see the brother or sister who needs a little support. I was worried because I know I ignore these things so often.
I am studying to be a teacher, so this passage hit home. But it shouldn't just hit home with me. We are all called to teach, minister, and proclaim the gospel. Every member of God's church has a calling and gift that is meant to build up the body of Christ. When that gets ignored, it is uglier than watching the number one ranked basketball team play with a point-guard who never passes.
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