Gracious Holy Spirit, you are the creator and sustainer of life and all good thing, those present and those yet to come. Teach us to rejoice in thanksgiving for all our blessings and to listen to the Spirit nurturing and growing them for new ways of living in your Kingdom. Amen.
What does it really mean to acknowledge God as the creator of all that is seen and unseen? And what responsibility does acknowledging those gifts place on our lives?
To say that God is the creator, the source, of all that is seen and unseen means that we in all that we have and are in ourselves and with all our talents and abilities are created by God. Any physical skills, any musical talent, any intellect, any athletic prowess, and on and on is first and foremost a creation and gift from God. This is not a debate between nature or nurture because even both of those are elements created by God. Your time, your health, your age, and even your personality are from God in the broadest sense. Even if you can’t see it or touch it still is part and parcel part of God’s creation. From Newton’s discovery of gravity to the unimaginable force of a Black Hole, from potential
energy of a rock balancing delicately on the crest of a hill to Black Energy present throughout the universe or universes it is all from God’s creative power.
As part of creation, we as human beings have great responsibility for how we use the gifts of God in our lives. We are responsible for how we use our talents and abilities, for good and for evil. Using God’s gifts in harmony with his will or in pursuit of our own will and sinfulness is an expression of how we understand our relationship to God. Do we understand that God is creator and we are creature with everything else in creation? Or do we elevate ourselves like demigods out of creation believing human wisdom for the use of creation is good enough and we do not need to listen to the voice of God’s living Word over and against our own desire.
Do you work with and nurture the gifts that God has placed in your life? Did you practice your trumpet, piano or guitar lessons; do you exercise or practice your jump shot and drop step in the post for basketball? Have you learned to save your money and do you maximize your investments so that you grow the resources from which you can give generously to the work of the kingdom of God? Have you studied and added new skills so that you are growing in the ways you can serve God? Can you teach Sunday School? Can you teach us or are you willing to learn how to speak Spanish so that you canlive with grace and hospitality among new members to our community? Can you sing in the choir?
The implications of understanding what it means to be gifted by God as creator and our responsibility to nurture and use God’s creative gifts wisely is boundless in its possibilities. Being fallen means we often neglect what is possible and settle for what is comfortable. It means we frequently accept diminishing what God has created and placed in our care and stewardship rather than nurturing, growing and increasing the possible.
Scripture tells of both gifts of the Spirit (1 Corinthians 12:8-11) and the fruits of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-26). What gifts has the Lord of Creation granted you and how are you using them to bear fruit for the kingdom of God. How does our awareness of being both saint and sinner impact on our confessing our shortfalls in using God's gracious gifts? How does God's continuing love and healing move us forward and into new ways of using those gifts and bearing new fruits?
What is seen in your life and what is still unseen because God isn’t done with you yet.
If you enjoy these devotions and reflections and believe in the spiritual reality of our struggles as Saints and Sinners please help us fund this ministry for the next three years so that we can keep it advertizing free. Thank you and God bless you for your help.
http://www.gofundme.com/a1ab9s
What does it really mean to acknowledge God as the creator of all that is seen and unseen? And what responsibility does acknowledging those gifts place on our lives?
To say that God is the creator, the source, of all that is seen and unseen means that we in all that we have and are in ourselves and with all our talents and abilities are created by God. Any physical skills, any musical talent, any intellect, any athletic prowess, and on and on is first and foremost a creation and gift from God. This is not a debate between nature or nurture because even both of those are elements created by God. Your time, your health, your age, and even your personality are from God in the broadest sense. Even if you can’t see it or touch it still is part and parcel part of God’s creation. From Newton’s discovery of gravity to the unimaginable force of a Black Hole, from potential
energy of a rock balancing delicately on the crest of a hill to Black Energy present throughout the universe or universes it is all from God’s creative power.
As part of creation, we as human beings have great responsibility for how we use the gifts of God in our lives. We are responsible for how we use our talents and abilities, for good and for evil. Using God’s gifts in harmony with his will or in pursuit of our own will and sinfulness is an expression of how we understand our relationship to God. Do we understand that God is creator and we are creature with everything else in creation? Or do we elevate ourselves like demigods out of creation believing human wisdom for the use of creation is good enough and we do not need to listen to the voice of God’s living Word over and against our own desire.
Do you work with and nurture the gifts that God has placed in your life? Did you practice your trumpet, piano or guitar lessons; do you exercise or practice your jump shot and drop step in the post for basketball? Have you learned to save your money and do you maximize your investments so that you grow the resources from which you can give generously to the work of the kingdom of God? Have you studied and added new skills so that you are growing in the ways you can serve God? Can you teach Sunday School? Can you teach us or are you willing to learn how to speak Spanish so that you canlive with grace and hospitality among new members to our community? Can you sing in the choir?
The implications of understanding what it means to be gifted by God as creator and our responsibility to nurture and use God’s creative gifts wisely is boundless in its possibilities. Being fallen means we often neglect what is possible and settle for what is comfortable. It means we frequently accept diminishing what God has created and placed in our care and stewardship rather than nurturing, growing and increasing the possible.
Scripture tells of both gifts of the Spirit (1 Corinthians 12:8-11) and the fruits of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-26). What gifts has the Lord of Creation granted you and how are you using them to bear fruit for the kingdom of God. How does our awareness of being both saint and sinner impact on our confessing our shortfalls in using God's gracious gifts? How does God's continuing love and healing move us forward and into new ways of using those gifts and bearing new fruits?
What is seen in your life and what is still unseen because God isn’t done with you yet.
If you enjoy these devotions and reflections and believe in the spiritual reality of our struggles as Saints and Sinners please help us fund this ministry for the next three years so that we can keep it advertizing free. Thank you and God bless you for your help.
http://www.gofundme.com/a1ab9s
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