God has created each one of us with wonderful uniqueness. We have unique finger prints, hairlines, earlobes, personalities, talents, and giftings. Each of these unique traits are given to us with the hope that we will use them to the glory of God and to fulfill the purposes (notice "purposes" is plural) of God for our lives here on earth.
I always turn to the Scriptures to find out what God has to say about the way He created us and here are a few verses that are wonderful:
Ephesians 2:10 - "For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them."
Matthew 10:30 - "But even the hairs of your head are all numbered."
Psalm 139:16 - "Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them."
Because this life on earth can be so filled with daily demands on our time, we can feel like using our gifts, skills, and talents is a luxury we cannot afford. There are demands to earn enough income to survive, the feeling that we are supposed to help everyone who asks for help, the duties we must fulfill in our homes to keep everyone fed and clothed . . . we can be completely consumed with "duties" to the neglect of using our God-given gifts. I would argue that we can and must afford the time to use our unique gifts, skills, and talents as unto Jesus. The demands of life will always be there. It is a matter of asking Jesus what He wants us to prioritize each day.
If you take an inventory at the beginning of each day of which skills, talents, and giftings you may be neglecting - you can ask Jesus how to make time to use them in a way that will be pleasing, like a beautiful fragrance, to Him. God will be faithful to use whatever you do, as unto Him, for His good and perfect purposes.
One of my unique traits is that I am artistic and I love painting. I like to paint things that bring attention to God's creation (flowers, landscapes, beach scenes, etc.) and even though I know that this can be used for God's glory, I sometimes struggle with the feeling that it is a luxury to paint (not a necessity). Therefore, I sometimes find myself neglecting this gift, putting it on the back burner to be used only after I get all the necessities done.
I am learning, through the soft and gentle nudging from the Lord, that I can say "no" to some of those things that could totally fill my day with all sorts of "duties" while saying "yes" to setting aside time to use my art as unto the Lord. The daily tasks will always be there, but I have a limited number of days to live my life on this earth, and I want to be sure to use the gifts God has given me before I am called Home (Heaven).
How about you? Do you have a gift that feels like a luxury to use? Do you have a spiritual gift of encouragement, evangelism, administration, teaching or discernment? You can combine your spiritual gifts with your skills, talents, and physical gifts to bring glory to God and to bring God's Good News to other people.
I'll leave you with this one simple action item. Get up each morning and sit with pen and paper. Pray and ask God how to combine your spiritual gifts with your physical gifts to bring glory to Him and to bring the Good News to others. Jot down ideas that come to you.
Here is one simple example to illustrate how this might look. I have the gift of encouragement (spiritual gift) and I also have the gift of painting. The Lord can use something I do with my art to encourage someone in the Lord or to encourage someone to discover the Lord through His beautiful creation.
It will look different for you because, after all, you ARE unique. Praise God for how He made you uniquely and beautifully! Enjoy the process of combining your spiritual gifts with your physical gifts and see what the Lord will do with it. You sow the seeds and the Holy Spirit will grow the seeds as He sees fit.
Here's to You Being Uniquely and Wonderfully Made,
Sherry Joy Collier, Artist, Therapist, and Expressive Arts Specialist