Message from Pastor Ann Frerks
August 2010
I Have them,You Have Them, Now What?
God’s Beloved People,
When you hear a recurrent theme in various settings and conversations it’s good to pay attention. What’s the theme?
Gifts!
God has given each Christian two important gifts. The first is faith in Jesus Christ, his work of redemption, and thus forgiveness of sin. The second is the gift of one or more special abilities, which are to be used for the purpose of unifying the body of Christ and for the growth of God’s kingdom. These gifts are called spiritual gifts and they are received through our baptism.
Gifts!
I have them, you have them, now what?
How do you know what your gifts are?
How do you know where and how to use those gifts?
Like other presents, it is impossible to fully appreciate and make use of our spiritual gifts until they have been opened. We have a building full of people with gifts…how do we find them and put them to use?
There are tools that can help us begin to identify and open our spiritual gifts. (This is where the dialogue came in.)
“Ya, we’ve filled out those Time and Talent sheets What ever happened to them?”
(answer….it’s a mystery…)
“Who is responsible for contacting and recruiting people who fill them out?”
(answer…nobody seems to know…another mystery?…)
“If we’re just going to fill out papers and not use the information and contact people, forget it! We did that and it didn’t work.”
(response…OR we could IMPROVE the process…and MAKE it work…)
“When would we find a time when the congregation can participate?”
(Here-to-fore the answers and responses have been mine, but now others felt free to interject…)
“Let’s do it between services” said one.
“Let’s do it during worship!” said another.
“Let’s do it in place of the SERMON!” said an enthusiastic other.
Hmmmmmmmmmmmmm….thought I.
Gifts!
One of my gifts is to call forth gifts in others. Whatever it takes…we need to rally together because there is a lot of ministry going on and we need EVERYONE’S gifts…wait…Did I say RALLY? Hmmmmm…that gives me an idea….Rally Day’s coming in September….could we…might we…stay tuned for more.
Meanwhile. Why not immerse yourself in scripture? The Apostle Paul addresses the presence of spiritual gifts in three main sections of scripture: Romans 12, I Corinthians 12, and Ephesians 4. Peter also verifies their existence in I Peter 4:10. When you read these scriptures you will learn that you all have been given at least one spiritual gift. You will also learn that the purpose of spiritual gifts is to unify Christians in their faith and to produce growth within the church, both numerical and spiritual. These gifts are to be used out of love for one another, and in service to one another.
Gifts! I can hardly wait to open them!
Pastor Ann
Now about my sermons…….
pastorann@trinitylutheran-cda.org
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