Cultivating Intentionality with My Spiritual Gift

As with moms and mother-figures, every person is a gift from God with gifts to share, and this is more than simple sentiment. Part of the beauty of the kingdom of God is that it’s not just a few, select people endowed with special gifts. In God’s kingdom, every Christian receives a spiritual gift, gifts that complement – NOT compete with – each other. Once again, Paul utilizes the body metaphor to teach us about our spiritual gifts (vv4-5). As the human body has many individual parts, no single person or group can provide everything the church or local congregation needs for wellness and growth; rather, different spiritual gifts are needed for different functions in different contexts. That’s why the Holy Spirit showers Christ’s church with gifts. The fun part comes in discovering our gifts and how to be intentional with them for the kingdom of God. What does intentionality look like? (1) Be with Christ daily; (2) understand my gifting; (3) refuse to envy other gifts; (4) pray for discernment when to use my gift; and (5) pray for eagerness to develop my gift. As we transition from awareness to intentionality with our giftings (vv6-8), our own gifts are strengthened, families served, Christ’s church edified, and communities positively impacted and blessed.