Give Your Gift to God

Rom 12:3-8

One of my favorite sayings is, “If everyone in the church was just like me, there wouldn’t be any problems.” That’s a great saying, but it would be disastrous if were actually true.

What would happen to the church if we could all preach, but no one could fix the baptistery? What would happen if we could all make people feel at home, but no one would visit the hospital and encourage the sick? What if we could all lead singing, but no one would give to the church?

You see we all have different gifts from God and God planned for us to use them for his kingdom.

PRAYER

I. It’s All Me Baby!

A. You aren’t all that.

1. now that I have teen and preteen girls, I am learning a whole new way to talk.

a) I’m not near as hip as I used to be.

b) One of the phrases I keep hearing them say is “she thinks she’s all that.”

c) I want to know all what?

d) That’s girl talk for another girl who isn’t a friend that is popular or athletic or pretty or anything that the person speaking can’t be or do.

2. How many of us think we are all that when it comes to the church?

a) I’m the song leader.

b) I’m a bible class teacher.

c) I’m part of the founding family of our congregation.

d) I’m the preacher.

e) I’m---- and you can fill in whatever blank someone uses to say that they are better in some way than the rest of the church.

3. Part of my family used to be the main family in a smaller congregation. They were fine with people moving in or being baptized until one day the church that wasn’t related to them was getting bigger than those who were. One of my relative actually remarked to me when I was visiting. I hate that the church has gotten so big that we don’t control things anymore.

4. I about fell out of my chair when I heard that statement. What’s even more frightening was that the person so said it was deadly serious. She wasn’t joking in the least!

5. In Malawi, the village important people carry around a carved walking stick like this one. The stick is call the “big man stick.” Because it was a symbol of rank and wealth. They are dealing with a struggle in that country just like we do here. Certain people want to be the important people for the church in Malawi and will do whatever they have to in order to be considered the Big Men of the church. On the local level they are having problems with elders becoming elders only so they could have rank and power at that level.