Reckless 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 NLT

A little over a month ago I woke-up to an early morning text from one my closest friends, asking me to give her a call. I thought it might have been about some editing she was helping me with, however when I called, she actually wanted to share a dream she had about me the night before. It’s rare that she calls me with this type of thing, so I wasn’t concerned that it would be some “hocus-pocus” type stuff.  But never in a million years did I think it would be so spot on. She didn’t know it, but the very things she shared with me from her dream, hit exactly on what I had been struggling with that week. Her words gave me reassurance and the comfort that I needed to keep going.

As we continued talking about the dream and just life in general, I admired her maturity and sensitivity in recognizing how God was molding her gift. She’s been learning how to take her time before moving forward when she feels God is using her to speak into the life of someone else. In her discernment she understands that timing is everything, and while God has equipped us with certain gifts to use, if we don’t use them in the right way at the right time, they can be detrimental.  If we aren’t careful, we can use our gifts recklessly.

Reckless: (of a person or their actions) without thinking or caring about the consequences of an action.

Could it really be possible to use my gifts without thinking or caring about the consequences of my actions? I’m sad to say, but I believe the answer is yes.

One example that comes to mind, is Numbers 13-14.  Twelves leaders had been sent to spy out the land of Canaan. God had promised that He was “going to give” (vs. 2) it to them, but they still needed to go check it out.  They went, they saw, and 10 of the 12 came back with a report. But not a good one. Although they saw the “milk and honey”, they also saw giants.  Unfortunately they let these “giants” not only grip their hearts with fear, but they also infused it into the others they were leading.

With the exception of Joshua and Caleb, their gift of leadership was used not to reassure the people and direct their focus towards the promise of God, but rather to cause an uproar and discourage them in a major way. Their voice as leaders caused over one million people to miss out on what God had already promised (vs. 2). A sad consequence. A gift used recklessly.

Your gift might not be in leadership, maybe it’s teaching, or preaching.  Perhaps it’s counsel to your friends or leading worship at your church. Whatever it may be, the big idea is that each of us has gifts that can influence the lives of those around us. It’s important that we, like my friend, take time to exercise wisdom and discernment to make sure that we’re using the gifts that God has given us in a way that brings edification to those that we have influence over, and not be irresponsible with it. Remember “He who leads the upright astray in an evil way will himself fall into his own pit. But the blameless will inherit good” (Proverbs 28:10).

So as talented daughters of the King, let’s thank God for the gifts He has given us, and be sure we are using them wisely to serve others and bring glory to our Father.

Until Next Time!