What passions and opportunities has God given you?
This week, I’ve talked about the many different ways that God works through his children. God extends our heart to people in different realms – either nearby or spread around the world. He gifts us in many different ways and even works through us in ways that are different from our gifts. All of these differences display the myriad grace of God.
God also gives his children different passions (cares or concerns) and different opportunities. Now, certainly, not every desire is from God and not every door of opportunity is meant to be walked through. When we think about passions and opportunities, much care, prayer, and counsel can be helpful in determining if they are from God or not. But, that’s not the point of this post. Instead, I simply want us to think about how God gives all of us different passions and different opportunities to serve even as he’s also extending our hearts to people in different areas (nearby or around the globe) and even as he’s gifting us in different ways.
A good friend of mine enjoys working on cars. He uses that passion as a means of serving people. I don’t like working on cars, and know very little about cars themselves. But, there are other things that I’m passionate about. My goal is to allow God to use those passions and concerns as a means to serve others.
In the same way, God has given me certain opportunities that other people do not have. He gives those people opportunities that I do not have. Those opportunities can show up in their vocation, the place they live, their families, almost any aspect of life.
The question is: are we using our passions and opportunities for our own benefits, or do we see them as ways for God to work through us to increase and impact his kingdom?
As with spiritual gifts and as with how God extends your heart (i.e. to a specific group of people nearby or to groups of people spread around the globe), there are no good or bad passions and opportunities as long as they are from God and submitted to him. And, also as with those other things given by God, we tend to assume that people should have the same passions as us or that they should act on the same opportunities that God has given us.
Now, don’t get me wrong. I think it’s wonderful when a group of Jesus’ disciples work together to serve others. But, that does not mean that we all have the same passions and opportunities. Even when serving together, the diversities among us complement each other and again display God’s glory in so many different ways.
I think Paul sums up the point of this short set of quotes (I guess it’s a series) in his first letter to the church in Corinth:
Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone. To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. (1 Corinthians 12:4-7 ESV)
So, celebrate the diversity of gifts, kinds of services, and types of activities! Exhort one another to direct those works of the Spirit for the benefit of people. Don’t expect people to serve in the same way that you do. Instead, observe how God works through them differently and praise him for it!
A well-rounded look at the “one anothers”
A couple of weeks ago, in my post “The who, what, where, when, and why of the One Anothers,” I pointed out that Jon from “Jon’s Journey” was writing a series about the “one another” passages in Scripture.
In his introductory post, he explained that he was planning to cover the 5 “W” questions related to these instructions: what, who, where, when, and why. He even added a 6th post for the question, “How?”
Jon has now completed his series on the “one anothers.” I think this is a great series, so I’m adding links to each of the posts here:
Part 1: Five W’s of One Another – intro and verses showing what the one anothers are
Part 2: Who One Another
Part 3: Where One Another
Part 4: When One Another
Part 5: Why One Another
Part 6: How One Another
I’ll just add one more snippet for Jon’s post on “when”:
Do we think most of these actions should take place at a special time or scheduled event?
We know some believers did meet regularly together. Some daily and some on certain days of the week. But I believe these verses were not only related to regularly scheduled gatherings.
I think it is safe to say they took place whenever the believers interacted with each other.
Can you imagine the “one anothers” taking place any time believers are together with one another – whether it’s just two or if it’s more? Even on Sunday morning when the whole church gathers together (as is traditional today)?
Yep. I can imagine it.
You know what I can’t imagine? I can’t imagine that the authors of Scripture intended for their “one another” instructions to to apply at all times EXCEPT when the church gathers together.
How has God gifted you by his Spirit? (Part 2)
In my previous post (“How has God gifted you by his Spirit? (Part 1)“), I suggested that God empowers and equips his people by his Holy Spirit in many different ways. At times and for some people, God may choose to work primarily in one way – a way that may be considered that person’s “spiritual gift.” However, as we see in several examples in Scripture, God works through different people in different ways at different times and in different situations – i.e., different spiritual gifts.
When considering spiritual gifts, there is a danger. That danger is fixating on a specific spiritual gift. This kind of fixation (even with good intentions) can hinder the work that God desires to do through someone, and it can affect the relationships between God’s children.
First, fixating on a specific gift can hinder the work that God desire to do through someone because that person may not expect God to work through them in a certain way. Why? Because the person assumes that God will only work through them within that “spiritual gift.”
For example, consider a person that is “gifted” as a teacher. At times, God may choose to work through that same person to serve others or to prophesy or to work miracles. But, if the “teacher” only expects God to use her to teach others, then she may not follow what God is telling her to do. She’s not disobeying God because she desires to disobey; she’s disobeying because she has fixated on her particular spiritual gift.
Second, fixating on a specific gift can hinder relationships with God’s people. The person “gifted” as a servant not only loves to serve, he also tends to assume that God wants everyone to serve in the same way that he serves. When his gift is his focus, then that gift becomes important for everyone.
Obviously, when this happens, friction and discord build among God’s people. Or, if the gifted person is also given a position of authority over others, the others tend to adjust their own service to match their leader’s “gifting.”
Just as God extends people’s hearts differently (see my post “How far does your heart extend?“), he gifts them and works through them differently in whatever realm he places them. This should be expected, both in our own life and in the lives of others.
These differences are meant to be both embraced and celebrated! We should rejoice when God directs someone to serve people in a different realm than us or in a different manner than us. This simply demonstrates the myriad grace of God.
Besides extending our hearts to people in different regions and gifting us in different ways, God also gives us all different opportunities and passions. I’ll examine these differences next…
How are you? Fine, and you? Fine.
Bobby at “Deconstructing Neverland” has written a very good post called “You Don’t Know Jack.” The point of his post is that we often recognize (through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit) our need for relationships with others, especially others who are in Christ. However, in a desire to create those relationships, we often end up with something much less.
In fact, often when we create things to “build community,” we build a semblance of community that simply hides our lack of real community in Christ.
For example, Bobby writes:
That is precisely the dilemma one faces as they venture out in search for community in church life. Anyone who has Christ in them has this intrinsic desire for deep fellowship and community with other believers. It’s evident by the programs and meetings we plan and put together. There are community groups built around all sorts of interests and needs. People get together for bible studies, accountability, addiction recovery, marital status, and many other commonalities. I’ve been a part of each of these types of groups. The problem is that these groups do not form lasting communities, at least not in my experience…
We don’t know how to be transparent and honest with one another. What we know is what we’ve been trained for. We know how to hide our struggles and put on a happy face. We like our shallow conversations.
Shallow conversations are comfortable and safe. They can make us feel good about ourselves and others. We can pat each other on the back and call ourselves “community.”
But, when it comes down to it, we all recognize the difference. (And, by the way, those outside the church recognize the shallow relationships among Christians also.)
Community – even shared lives in Jesus Christ – takes time. It takes time because we must move beyond the shallow conversations: “How are you?” “Fine. And you?” “Fine.” We must be willing to ask each other difficult questions and share the “trash” (as Bobby calls it) from our own lives. And this is extremely important – we MUST offer each other the same grace that God has offered us in Jesus Christ.
Read Bobby’s post and then consider the question that he asked: “What are you going to do about it?”
How has God gifted you by his Spirit? (Part 1)
Yesterday, I asked the question, “How far does your heart extend?” With that question, I was asking where along the spectrum God has placed your loves and passions: from those nearby to those far away and across the globe. Neither extreme is better than the other.
In this post, I ask a similar, but someone different, question: How has God gifted you by his Spirit? This question refers to what is typically called “spiritual gifts.”
In Scripture, there are several different lists of spiritual gifts: Romans 12:6-8, 1 Corinthians 12:8-10, 1 Corinthians 12:27-30, 1 Corinthians 14:26, Ephesians 4:11, 1 Peter 4:10-11 (my personal favorite). While many suggest that Ephesians 4:11 is a special (and exhaustive) list, I do not think any of these lists are intended to be exhaustive.
In fact, in many ways, it’s impossible to know exactly which spiritual gift someone may or may not have or which spiritual gift someone may or may not be exercising. (And, yes, for the record, I think that “spiritual gift inventory” tests are pretty useless.) Of course, we can observe how God chooses to work through us and others. But, even that may not tell us everything.
Consider Paul. In the Book of Acts and in his letters, we see Paul working as an apostle, prophet, evangelist, shepherd, teacher, servant, encourager, giver, leader, tongues speaker, healer, helper, discerner, etc. So, what spiritual gift did Paul have?
Now, some might suggest that Paul was a super-Christian, but his co-worker Barnabas is described in many of the same ways as Paul, and God worked through Barnabas in many of the same ways listed above. The same could be said of other people in the New Testament, although we have less information about them.
This does not negate that fact that some people in the New Testament were known for one specific type of “gift.” For example, Philip was known as an evangelist while his daughters were known as prophets. (Acts 21:8-9)
So, as we’re thinking about how God has gifted us by his Spirit, we can begin by understanding that the “gifts” listed in Scripture may not be “hard and fast” or easily distinguished. Also, it’s possible that God can work through people in different ways at different times and in different locations and situations. At the same time, it’s also possible that God can choose to work through someone in a specific way primarily.
In Part 2, I’ll look at one of the dangers of considering how God has gifted us by his Spirit.
To be mutually encouraged among you by each other’s faith
The title of this post is my translation of the first part of Romans 1:12, which the ESV translates, “…[T]hat we may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith…” [I’m not sure why they decided to leave out the prepositional phrase “among/in you (plural).”]
I was reminded of this verse – part of Paul’s letter to the Christians in Rome – when I read a post by Eric at “A Pilgrim’s Progress” called “Willing to be One Anothered.” In this short post, Eric exhorts us toward mutual service (that service to and from one another).
I’m not going to quote much of his post, because it is fairly short. (So, make sure you jump over to his site and read the whole post.) Here is a short excerpt:
In talking about the one anothers, most of the focus usually falls on what we should do for others. I suppose this makes sense. However, we also need to realize that we must allow others to do for us. The one anothering is a two way street…
There is a sort of reciprocal nature to all this. We all grow up together in Christ as we serve one another. We help others grow by one anothering together. This involves both giving and receiving. If we only focus on the giving, we end up inadvertently hurting both ourselves and others.
I can’t speak to other parts of the world, but I know in this area being helped by others is frowned upon. But, among the church, we must be willing to both serve others and to be served by others. Christ matures his church as we work together to help one another.
Sometimes it’s harder for me to receive from others than to give to others. But, like Eric says, both are necessary parts of God growing and maturing his people.
Would you be willing to share a time when God worked through one of his children to “give” to you?
How far does your heart extend?
We all know that God gifts his children differently through the presence and power of his Holy Spirit. We also know that God gives us all different opportunities to increase his kingdom. But, lately, I’ve had a few conversations that have stretched my thinking in other ways as well.
For one thing, several people have commented about or asked something like this: “How far does your heart extend?”
Now, I should define what this questions means, as I’ve come to understand it. And, it helps me to start with what the question doesn’t mean. For one thing, the question is not asking whether or not you love God or others. In fact, for this question, loving God and loving others is assumed. Second, the question does not assume that the farther your heart extends the more you love God or others.
Instead, this question is asking something different: To whom is God directing your love, passions, and concerns? Like with the question of spiritual gifts or opportunities to serve, no answer is better or worse than other answers. However, thinking through this question can help us understand how God wants to use us.
For example, God has given some people a very strong passion and love and concern for the people immediately around them – the people that they see every day. They are content in their spirit serving the people who live near them.
For other people, God has given them a very strong passion and love and concern for people around the world. They are content when they are serving people in a variety of locations.
Finally, I think God gives all of us strong passions and loves and concerns for people somewhere along this spectrum, from the people near us to people across the globe. Again, neither end of the spectrum is better than the other. And, having passions, loves, and concerns at one end of the spectrum does not mean that we should not display love toward others (either near or far).
Instead, if we can honestly answer the question, “How far does your heart extend?” then we may be able to better understand which direction God is leading us. Is he leading us to primarily pour our lives into the people in a certain location, or is he leading us to primarily pour our lives into people in different locations?
Also, answering this question can also help us grow in the other direction. For example, if God has extended our hearts to people around the world, we need to constantly check our attitude and service toward those near us. And, if God has extended our hearts to people nearby, we need to constantly check our love and concern for those around the world.
Finally, asking and answering this question can help us check our attitudes toward people whom God is using in a different way. If we pour our lives into people nearby, do we think less of those who have loves and concerns spread around the world (and, thus, not as “dedicated” to people near us)? Or, if we have passions for people spread around the globe, do we think less of those who spend so much time loving and caring for physical neighbors (instead of shifting their concerns toward “the nations”)?
But, in general, asking and answering that question can help us determine how and where God may be using us: How far does your heart extend?
So, I’ll ask you: How far does your heart extend?
Guest Blogger: E-phesians 4:11, E-ministry for E-quipping The Church Through Social Media?
I’ve invited several people to write “guest blog posts” for this blog. There are several reasons for this: 1) To offer different perspectives. 2) To generate even more discussion and conversation between blogs. 3) To introduce other bloggers to my readers.
(If you are interested in writing a guest blog post, please contact me at aknox[at]sebts[dot]com.)
Today’s post was written by Miguel Labrador. You can connect with Miguel via his Facebook profile, his Facebook page “Making Disciples,” Twitter (@Missionaries), or his blog “God Directed Deviations.”
——————————————-
E-phesians 4:11, E-ministry for E-quipping The Church Through Social Media?
~
And He gave some as E-postles, E-prophets,
E-vangelists, E-pastors, and E-teachers
for the E-quipping of the saints for the work of
service,to the building up of the body of Christ.
~
Ephesians 4:11,12
E-Ministry to an E-generation?
~
“If Facebook were a physical nation, it would now be the third-most populous on earth.“[1] If we included all other social platforms in addition to facebook, the E-nation of the E-lectronic social realm, might in fact, be the largest nation on earth. The way we E-xecute the Great Commission may necessitate a closer E-xamination. We should not so easily dismiss the idea that Jesus would also want us to Make E-sciples.
Certainly, there can never be a complete disconnect from brick & mortar ministry, the one to one personal E-xtending of our hands in fellowship, but the E-world is a reality. How we minister to one another and those outside of the church, must include E-vangleism.
If we are all gifted, and all have individual predominant ministry characteristics, then for those of us who are active on the internet, socially speaking, doesn’t it make sense to carry that ministry into our E-spheres of influence?
Doesn’t the vast opportunity of ministry to those E-thnicities and cultures demand our attention? I am not suggesting that our E-ministries replace serving others or incarnating ourselves and being a physical Christ presence within a community, but that doesn’t mean completely ignoring the Mission E-field either.
For me, as a Missionary in the Cloud Forest Region of Ecuador, we have an abundance of face-time with the people of the region. Our “real-word” activities include, but are not limited to: weeping with those who weep, providing clean drinking water to those without, being witnesses to Jesus, encouraging and equipping the saints, and making disciples. Also, and quite naturally, as an adjunct to those activities, our social network (on-line community) has grown significantly. While some may have issue with spending time on the internet while I’m “supposed to be” out doing “real” things with “real people,” I can assure you that the latter would be impossible without the former. My E-xperiences out in the real world feed my somewhat E-ccentric online ministry. This could, and sometimes does, get out of balance, but thankfully I have E-xhorters to keep me on track.
Ephesians 4:11 is certainly multi-purpose in scope, but it’s principle components are service to others, equipping the saints, and the unity of the church. Certainly these components are not relegated to the physical world. They must, in our culture, be applied to our E-lives as well.
If you are gifted for ministry in E-vangelism, then you should be heralding the good news online as well. And if you do have the gift of E-vangelism, then, like in “real-life,” you should be helping others by E-quipping them and E-ncouraging them in their E-lives to E-vangelize others.
Likewise if your predominate Ephesians 4 gifting or characteristic is in the Prophetic, Teaching, Pastoral, or Apostolic, then those gifts should quite naturally E-xtend into your E-world where you can E-ncourage and E-quip them for the service of E-ministry.
[1] From “The Economist.”
[2] ”Escipleship” some sources for further consideration
—
Miguel Labrador
Scripture… As We Live It #205
This is the 205th passage in “Scripture… As We Live It.”
Therefore we are comforted. And besides our own comfort, we rejoiced still more at the joy of Titus, because his spirit as your leader has been refreshed he has refreshed by you all you all. (2 Corinthians 7:13 re-mix)
(Please read the first post for an explanation of this series.)
Replay: Fasting and Feasting to the Lord
Four years ago, I wrote a post called “Fasting and Feasting to the Lord.” Today (and historically for some), people tend to divide activities into the physical and the spiritual. Eating, for example, is a physical activity that only affects us physically. However, according to Scripture, fasting (not eating) or feasting (eating… alot) can be an extremely spiritual activity that affects our relationship with God and with one another.
————————–
Fasting and Feasting to the Lord
A couple of weeks ago, I was studying the topic of fasting. At that time, I thought that I was going to be teaching from Matthew 6:16-18 –
And when you fast, do not look gloomy like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces that their fasting may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, that your fasting may not be seen by others but by your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you. (Matthew 6:16-18 ESV)
I was already familiar with the passage in Isaiah concerning fasting –
“Cry aloud; do not hold back; lift up your voice like a trumpet; declare to my people their transgression, to the house of Jacob their sins. Yet they seek me daily and delight to know my ways, as if they were a nation that did righteousness and did not forsake the judgment of their God; they ask of me righteous judgments; they delight to draw near to God. ‘Why have we fasted, and you see it not? Why have we humbled ourselves, and you take no knowledge of it?’ Behold, in the day of your fast you seek your own pleasure, and oppress all your workers. Behold, you fast only to quarrel and to fight and to hit with a wicked fist. Fasting like yours this day will not make your voice to be heard on high. Is such the fast that I choose, a day for a person to humble himself? Is it to bow down his head like a reed, and to spread sackcloth and ashes under him? Will you call this a fast, and a day acceptable to the LORD? Is not this the fast that I choose: to loose the bonds of wickedness, to undo the straps of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and to break every yoke? Is it not to share your bread with the hungry and bring the homeless poor into your house; when you see the naked, to cover him, and not to hide yourself from your own flesh? (Isaiah 58:1-7 ESV)
But, I was not familiar with the following passage from Zechariah –
Then the word of the LORD of hosts came to me: “Say to all the people of the land and the priests, When you fasted and mourned in the fifth month and in the seventh, for these seventy years, was it for me that you fasted? And when you eat and when you drink, do you not eat for yourselves and drink for yourselves? Were not these the words that the LORD proclaimed by the former prophets, when Jerusalem was inhabited and prosperous, with her cities around her, and the South and the lowland were inhabited?”
And the word of the LORD came to Zechariah, saying, “Thus says the LORD of hosts, Render true judgments, show kindness and mercy to one another, do not oppress the widow, the fatherless, the sojourner, or the poor, and let none of you devise evil against another in your heart.” But they refused to pay attention and turned a stubborn shoulder and stopped their ears that they might not hear. They made their hearts diamond-hard lest they should hear the law and the words that the LORD of hosts had sent by his Spirit through the former prophets.
Therefore great anger came from the LORD of hosts. “As I called, and they would not hear, so they called, and I would not hear,” says the LORD of hosts, “and I scattered them with a whirlwind among all the nations that they had not known. Thus the land they left was desolate, so that no one went to and fro, and the pleasant land was made desolate.” (Zechariah 7:4-14 ESV)
It is clear from these passages that fasting and feasting (from Zechariah 7:6) pertains to more than the absence or presence of food and drink. In fact, I would suggest that, according to Isaiah 58 and Zechariah 7, fasting and feasting pertains to more than our relationship with God. Instead, God intends fasting and feasting to turn our hearts toward him, toward one another, and toward those who are hungry, homeless, poor, oppressed, fatherless, widowed, and foreign.
These are not contrary or contradictory ideas. Turning our hearts toward God will automatically turn our hearts toward other people. Why? Because God’s heart is with people. It is impossible to read Scripture without seeing that God cares for people and expects his children to demonstrate that same love and concern. In fact, if our hearts are not turned toward others, then our hearts are not properly turned toward God. If we do not demonstrate love toward others, then we do not love God.
Notice especially this rhetorical question from Isaiah 58:7 – “Is it [the fast that God chooses] not to share your bread with the hungry and bring the homeless poor into your house; when you see the naked, to cover him, and not to hide yourself from your own flesh?” This fast goes far beyond giving up food and drink. It actually goes beyond turning your thoughts toward God. This rhetorical question recognizes that when one of God’s children turns his or her thoughts toward God, that person’s thoughts are also turned towards those who have physical needs, and that person acts to relieve those needs.
I have “fasted” before, meaning that I have given up food for a specified period of time. I still have several journals that I wrote during these “fasts”. But, when I compare my “fasts” to Scripture, I see that my “fasts” were not of the type that God chooses. I remember learning many things during “fasts” – many things about God and many things about myself. But, if I honestly compare my “fasts” with the fasts that God desires (as described in Isaiah 58 and Zechariah 7), then I must admit that I did not truly fast before God. How do I know? Because my heart was not turned toward those who were suffering injustice, oppression, hunger, poverty, etc. Since my heart was not turned toward others, I certainly did not act as God desires.
I wonder… am I willing to fast now?