Read: Ephesians 1:3-14
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places. (v. 3)
Each month, our church has what we call Fourth Sunday Feast. We bring food and eat together after the morning service. I love that I prepare just one dish to bring, but I get to eat a complete meal. It’s a picture to me of how the church works. We all bring our different gifts, and the Lord puts them together to nourish his people.
In our small church, it can be easy to focus on what we don’t have that other, bigger churches do. Yet in the spiritual realm, we are “blessed . . . with every spiritual blessing” (v. 3), all that we need. Not many in this church are highly educated, wealthy, or influential. Yet we each bring the gifts that God has given us: compassion, music, prayer, teaching, crafts, cooking, cleaning, gardening, and more. Our gifts all come together to nurture this little part of Christ’s body.
Our culture often teaches us to focus on what we lack, to always want more and more. With God there’s abundant blessing, enough for everyone. Instead of focusing on what we lack, it’s good to assess what we’ve been given, and how we’re using those gifts. We can always be generous with what we have, and take courage in using our gifts, because we know that we have all we truly need with God, the giver of all good gifts.
As you pray, thank God for his spiritual blessings, and ask how you might use them to serve others.
About the Author
Bonnie Nicholas, LMSW, retired in 2020 after serving as Director of Safe Church Ministry in the Christian Reformed Church in North America.
