God’s Gifts

God has given each of you a gift from his great variety of spiritual gifts. Use them well to serve one another.

1 Peter 4:10

Birthdays and Christmas are often celebrated by giving gifts. Many times the gifts are in different-sized packages, wrapped in special paper and tied with ribbon. Part of the fun is trying to guess what’s in the package and then opening it to find out. Did you get the camera you wanted? Or is it a watch in that package? Is there a pair of new jeans or a jacket inside the gift bag?

God has given you gifts too. These aren’t gifts like a tablet or a bicycle. They are things you are good at doing. He wants you to use your talents to help or encourage others. Can you think of any gifts you have that allow you to do good for others?

You may be surprised to find out that your natural friendliness is one of God’s gifts to you. It helps you to reach out to other girls and make them feel welcome at church or feel they have a friend at school. Your tendency to listen to others is God’s gift to you so you can encourage a discouraged student, brother or sister, teacher, or parent. Your talent for writing is God’s gift to you, allowing you to jot an uplifting note to a friend, Sunday school teacher, or lunchroom worker. The organizational skills you have that drive your sister crazy when you hang her clothes by color might be just the gift you need to help organize a mission fund-raiser.

What seems to you to be merely a part of your personality may be something God has gifted you with in order to do something special for him. He wants you to make a difference in the lives of those around you. So be happy that your talents are things like being friendly, listening, putting things in order, or whatever skills you might have in doing good. God gave you exactly what you need to use each day to do good things for others.

Make a list of all the things you’re good at. Include the things that seem little, like the ability to smile even when things are going wrong or the way you can find something good in every situation. The way your dog prefers you to others might mean he senses a compassionate spirit. Put that on the list too. If you can’t think of anything, have a parent or teacher help you. Then ask God to show you how to use those things to make a difference in someone else’s life.