Have you ever started to do something in life and it just came naturally? I’m talking about doing something, and it just felt right. As if you were created by God for this very purpose. The first time I noticed this in my own life was when I was up on stage doing our theater productions in school. The first play I ever did was, “Where It All Comes True” and I can still remember this production like it was yesterday. I remember thinking during our practices, “There is no way I am going to be able to get up on that stage in front of everyone and do these lines.” Then came opening night and I remember quietly sitting in the dressing area and panicking. I couldn’t remember a single line that I was supposed to say that entire night. As they say, “The show must go on,” and when I walked out onto the stage that night all of the lines came flooding back to me and this time not only did I have the lines memorized but I felt like I had them so well memorized that I could even deliver them with a little flair. After all, all of the eyes were on me!

I’m sharing all of this, not to tell you how good of an actor I am, (even though I am pretty incredible) but to tell you how right it felt to be up on the stage. Looking back I desperately miss it, but life gets in the way and you don’t have the time that you did in high school. It still felt right and like I should just be doing this every day. It was a God given gift to be up in front of people and to be speaking. Some people hate to speak in front of others, but you get them doing something else and that just feels right to them. This past weekend my daughter had a dance recital and it was great to see everyone dance. It was even better to watch the expressions on their faces when they danced. Some of them were just dancing because it felt right and it brought them joy.

God gives us all a gift and our purpose is to bring him glory using that gift. One of my best friends is extremely good at math and physics and the such. So much so that when we went to a theme park as a group, he wasn’t speaking much. I thought for sure he wasn’t having a good time and that made me worry. However, after being quiet for a little while he turned and told me about the physics of the roller coaster. It wasn’t that he wasn’t having a good time, it was that he was using the God given gift to figure things out and I think that brought him great joy to think about those things. You can bring glory to God by just doing what he has called you to do in your life. It doesn’t have to be preaching, teaching or prophesying. Believe it or not, there are people that get enjoyment out of cleaning and organizing and they can do this for the glory of God. It is a gift given to them, and they use it to share His love with other people. I want to be very clear here, these are NOT the spiritual gifts that are given by the Holy Spirit that we see in 1 Corinthians 12:8-10 or Romans 12:6-8. I am talking about natural talent that you have, but can be used to demonstrate what God has done in your life. Many of you may think, “I like to paint, all by myself. I don’t want anyone around me, so how can that be used to glorify our Father?” Or maybe you think, “I like to add numbers together and do accounting, how can that be used by God?” What if I told you, those could be used as well. Maybe it is time to share your paintings with the people around you. Just to simply tell them this is where I was and this is where I ended up, not because I brought myself out of the pit, but God did that. In my opinion Psalm 96:1-4 is a great example of this. Could you imagine what the world would be like, if we as Christians could give the glory to God in all that we do and to sing his praises? “Oh sing to the Lord a new song; sing to the Lord, all the earth! Sing to the Lord, bless his name; tell of his salvation from day to day. Declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous works among all the peoples! For great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised; he is to be feared above all gods.” What if we used our natural talents and abilities to sing praises to God. Would that feel so much better than grumbling about all the little things that go wrong! 

I wish I could sit here and tell you that I do not grumble and complain, even though we are told in Philippians 2:14-18, “Do all things without grumbling or disputing, that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, holding fast to the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I may be proud that I did not run in vain or labor in vain. Even if I am to be poured out as a drink offering upon the sacrificial offering of your faith, I am glad and rejoice with you all. Likewise you also should be glad and rejoice with me.” It isn’t always easy to be a light in the world. Sometimes it seems easier to go along with everything else, but that isn’t what we are told to do. We are told to be a light in the world. Have you ever been in an extremely dark room and it feels like the darkness is pushing in all around you. Suddenly a flashlight turns on or a match is lit and you can feel the darkness retreating from it. You stare into the light as if it makes you feel safe. This is what I am calling you to do. Use those natural talents that God has given you and be a light into the world. No matter what that talent is. If your talent is baseball, then play baseball as hard as you can and give the glory to God. If your talent is accounting, then be all means add numbers harder than anyone else has added numbers and give the glory to God. Even if your talent is the most mundane thing or the most extreme thing. Do it all for the glory of God and be a light in the world. As always please know I am praying for you!

P.S. I bet you thought you were going to get away without my deep Bible dive this week. Too bad! 🙂 Here is your question for the week and be sure to leave a comment with your answer. I would love to hear what your answer is. What are the 7 feasts celebrated by the Jewish and how did Christ fulfill them (or some of them)?