Ah, The Great Outdoors!

It was a perfect day out on the patio.  The weather was just right, sun shining, sweet little breezes, the goldfish in the pond were happy, the birds were singing joyously. 

So I decided to use the iBird app on my phone to see if the birds would react to the birdcalls.  I had done this before when we were camping, and it was great fun.  I doubt it really mattered to the birds, but we enjoyed it.

I finally found the app, waited for it to load, went to the goldfinch page, hit the “song” button and…  nothing happened.  Nothing happened! 

I get so frustrated with computer things that don’t work right.  I messed with that thing, trying this and that, but I could not get it to work.  None of the birdsongs I tried would work.  What’s the big idea, selling me an app that works a few times and then quits? 

I’ll try it again.  Maybe it will work if I turn it off and then turn it on again.  That takes about 5 minutes because the app is so large, but in the meantime I can try to think of a way to get it to work.

I was sitting in my beloved outdoor recliner, my ubiquitous tea at my side, phone in hand.  I was talking to myself, getting more and more agitated as the phone moved slowly along in the only way it knows how. 

I had my head down, thinking of ways to outsmart it when it dawned on me that I was missing the whole point.  And I was literally missing the gorgeous afternoon on the patio.  In my weak attempt to force my phone to do something it was clearly unwilling to do, I had completely blocked out my surroundings, including the very reason I was there at all.

I had come out on my patio to watch the birds and butterflies, keep an eye out for a hummingbird, listen to the birds as they called back and forth and… well, you get the idea.

It made me wonder how many things I was missing by keeping my head down instead of up, facing the good Lord and enjoying His love and peace.

Just like that perfect afternoon setting in my backyard, God’s love is all around us, given to us in little gifts as we go about our day.  He gave me that wonderful afternoon to enjoy.  I certainly didn’t deserve it. In fact, I was trying to kill it!  Thank God (and I mean that literally) I realized what I was doing before it was too late and the time slipped away into darkness.

It really should be the first thing that comes to mind when something touches my spirit – “This is a gift from God!”  A friend’s thoughtfulness, a sweet smile from a stranger, a warm cat curled up in your lap, the satisfaction that comes with something well done – His gifts are endless.

Let’s watch for them, be ready to identify them, and praise God for them.  He loves it when we do that…

Photo by Cindy West McGregor

 

Oh, You Shouldn’t Have!

Don’t you just love to get a gift?  I always feel a little greedy as I frantically tear the wrapping off or jerk the tissue paper out of the gift bag.  I never was one to carefully pull the tape off, gingerly unwrap, and then smooth out and keep the wrapping paper.  No, gimme my gift!  Who cares about the paper?

But sometimes it’s hard to take a gift from someone.  If it’s not my birthday or Christmas, why would someone give me a gift?  When I was working at the Clerk’s Office, every once in a while one of my customers would bring me a little something, and it really made my day, week and year!  But I always protested, “Oh, you didn’t have to bring me anything!”  And the customer would be smiling broadly at me because the gift was working its magic of making me feel special.

That’s what we really want, isn’t it?  We want to feel special, we want to be special.  We want to know that someone somewhere is thinking about us, wanting to be with us, praying for us. 

And most of all, we want to be loved.  When we are given a gift just out of the blue, we feel loved.  It feels so good!

Do you know what your spiritual gifts are?  Do you know what your talents are?  Do you know which are spiritual gifts and which are talents?  As Christians, we can get all tangled up in these questions.  We love the Lord and we want to do things for Him out of the joy we have for Him.

There are plenty of books and studies on discovering your gifts and/or talents.  I know people who have taken more than one class on this subject and still are not satisfied that they know the answers.

I think we should forget the questions and just relax.  Why not take everything, gift or talent, and use it for God?  Just assume that whatever it is that you’re good at is from God (because it is) and then use it for God’s glory.

I have said this before and I will say it again and again:  As Christians, we have to be different.  Who cares if it’s a spiritual gift or a talent if it’s used for God?

Anybody can have a talent.  Anybody can do good works.  There are many fine people out there doing just that, but they are not Christians. 

Spiritual gifts come to Christians from the power of the Holy Spirit.  When you’ve done something that satisfies your soul, or something you know is beyond your capabilities, you have tapped into that power.  It’s a glorious thing, and we need to look at it and be aware that we have been used by God. 

Come, Holy Spirit.  Fill the hearts of your faithful and kindle in them the fire of your love.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms.          

                                                                       1 Peter 4:10 (NIV)