Obedience....

The sermon yesterday by Pastor Seth, was about obedience.  Then in our Sunday School class we also talked about obedience...about what it is and ways in which we can be obedient to God.  One wayI never thought of before was to use our gifts as a way of being obedient to God.  Now, if you're like me, the normal reaction would be to say...what gifts...I don't really have any gifts of significance and certainly not to share with others.

I've been thinking about that.  I guess I have come to the conclusion that yes, we do have gifts.  Some gifts are more evident than others, some are more developed than others but even the ones we think we are best at, probably need a lot more developing.  I become afraid of using gifts when I think to myself that my gifts may not even BE what I think they are.  And if they are what I think they are, I'm afraid to use them to any extent for fear of being criticized by others and to make it worse, that I wouldn't be criticized to my face.  I would far rather be offered constructive criticism than to have others whisper something like "I hope she doesn't think she's good at _____ (fill in the blank), because she really isn't!"  However, if we begin to use our gift in order to become better at it, then we are fulfilling God's desire for us to be obedient.  Not that we should brag, or boast, or let others know about this gift, but to use it humbly to encourage, and uplift and help others along in life.  For many of us, pride begins to set in and we actually believe it US who are responsible for having these gifts, that WE are so good at _____ (fill in the blank).  I believe offering ourselves to God to be used however he wishes and wherever he desires is the best thing we can do.  When we do that, we become less and God becomes more.  It is a matter of the heart...of not only doing what is good and right but knowing deep down that it really IS right.

It is true for everything where God is concerned.  He desires us to learn and change and become and move forward in this life.  For some of us, it takes a lifetime...but along the way, we meet people who become good examples to us and parts of us change because of what we have seen in others.  So too, when we ourselves are the ones being the good example, others also change a tiny bit because of what they have seen in us.  We are, as my son said to me today, "integral to one another" (as in 'Essential or necessary for completeness' according to the dictionary).

Guess that's enough for one night. 

By the way, thanks for how your life has touched mine and changed me into a better person.  I will always be grateful for that gift.

Here are a few pictures of the "Deb Farewell"...friends/co-workers/retirees....who have become a part of me, of who I am.

I will miss this little guy a whole lot when he moves

away...he too, has left an impression on my heart.