Talent part 5
Time, Talent, Treasure. The Three T's. The way we express love. The way we express GOD'S love. To Him. By letting Him first love us and then loving Him back by loving each other. So when we're looking at "Whatsoever you do, do it unto the Lord," what that really means is... love people. Because we love God BY loving people. That's as simple as I can make it. Jesus put it like this, "And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me" (Matthew 25:40). How we treat people is how we treat God. How we relate to people is how we relate to God. How we see people is how we see God. Because there is no separation between God and men. God lives IN men. And the best (possibly the only) way to truly love God--by loving people--is by using our Three T's. Not by trying to get anything from anybody, but by giving the people we come into contact with what we have. Giving people who we are. That's one of the biggest parts of my ministy: Be who you are. Be who you are. Be who you are. Stop trying to be someone you're not in order to try to get something you (think you) haven't got. But the only way we can truly be who we are is by knowing who we are. Who we really are. Which is who we are in Christ. Which is who Christ is in us. That's the key. Letting God--LOVE--reveal Himself to us, and in us, and through us, and as us. Filling ourselves to overflowing with what God has already filled us with--Himself. His Spirit. His love. And then letting that love come out. That's our talent. And, yes, it looks like different thing coming from different people. We all have different ways of expressing love. Some people sing. Some people dance. Some people write. Some people play instruments. Some people teach. Some people talk. Some people listen. But everybody can do something. The trick is making sure you use your talent to glorify God. And by that I mean... do it with love. If you're not doing it because of love, for love, by love, with love, in love... should you really be doing it? And that applies to a lot of "secular" things too. I work hard at my job because I love my family and want to provide for them. It's a labor of love. So always remember, you gotta do what you gotta do. Taking care of people is an ultimate expression of love. But that's kind of what we're going to get into starting tomorrow with the series about Time. To end this Rant series I just want to say you have a talent. Don't think you don't. And don't think just because it's not the same as someone else's that it's not good enough to share. People need what you have. People need you to be who YOU are. You can do things that no one else can. You can reach people that no one else can. So instead of worrying about what you can't do... just do what you can do. Instead of trying to be someone you're not... just be who you are. Let that love that is inside you come out. Use your talent to express that love. Give people what you've got. Give people what God has given you. Receive it and release it!