Read the transcript from today's video devotional.
One of the biggest lies of our day is that our value is based on how much you and I can produce. I know I believed that lie in the past, and here's what it did to me.
I started just doing more for God, thinking that I'll be more valuable to God because I'm busier for Him. One of the most freeing verses in the entire Bible is 1 Corinthians chapter 12, verse 6, because it reminds us we all have a lane that God has given us, and we need to stay in that lane. It also frees us from the comparison trap of comparing ourselves—of who's more fruitful or who God is using more than me.
If we run down that path, we're going to lose our joy very fast.
Chaos in the Corinthian Church
Let me give you some context so that we can understand the content of 1 Corinthians chapter 12 first. First Corinthians chapter 12 is a passage that talks about the Corinthian church who had a pecking order. They were elevating certain gifts above other gifts. There was favoritism. There was a lot of chaos in the church.
Paul says, "God works in different ways, but it's the same God who does the work in all of us."
God's Unique Wiring
A person is uniquely wired, uniquely placed. Why? To use the gifts that God has given them. Whether you're a businessman, whether you're a teacher, a stay-at-home mom—your job, my job is to bloom where God has planted us to be faithful with what God has given us in our hands.
Moses had a staff. David had a sling and a couple of rocks. God used them.
Let me ask you this: What is in your hand today? What is God giving you? There are certain people that I will impact and that you will impact, like there are certain people that I can't touch because I don't live in a specific area. But I'm mindful of where God has placed me.
Where God Has Placed You
I remind myself, God, You placed me there for a reason—in my neighborhood and my family. Where I play basketball. The coffee shops that I go to.
Why? So that I can re-present. That's what it means to represent Jesus. I'm re-presenting Jesus to people.
Freedom From Comparison
Paul reminds us: God works in different ways. Everybody is uniquely wired. When we understand that, it frees us from the comparison trap, and we can celebrate when other people are being used by God.
When I see fruit in someone's life, I don't have to be like, what? Why can't God use me like that?
No, not at all. I rejoice because the kingdom of God is advancing, because I have a brother and sister who's being faithful with the gifts that have been given to them.
We're Part of God's Kingdom
It is not about us. We're not trying to build our own little kingdom here. No, we're a part of a big kingdom, and that's the kingdom of God. Our job is to be faithful where God has placed us.
What's in your hand? Use that for the glory of God.
