Finding Your Gift

Recently, during one of my sermons, I confessed a great sin that has burdened me for many years. Like many others (justifying) when I was young I would often sneak a peak at my Christmas presents. Yes it is true, but again, to be clear, I mostly blame my parents for this (deflecting) because they did such a poor job at hiding them (always in the same place each year). Fortunately, or unfortunately, depending on how you look at it, my family doesn't have to face the same kind of temptation because I am horrible at waiting to give people their presents. I'm too excited to show them what I found or at least tell them what I got them. Case in point, I received my wife's gift in the mail yesterday... yeah... I've already given it to her... still wrapped in the packing paper.

Now I say this because I believe my behaviour, or at least my attitude in this is biblical, in a sense. Hear me out. Scripture tells us that our heavenly Father also wants us to know and discover the gifts He has for us. As Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 12:4 "there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit". As Peter explains in 1 Peter 4:10 "each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God's varied grace". The question is then, how do we know/discover what our spiritual gifts are if we are called to us them? Well there are certainly no shortage of those spiritual gift inventories we can use. But may I suggest the four simple steps Dr. James M. Boice put forward in his article "Finding Your Gift": read your bible, pray, examine yourself and ask others. Here is what he writes about prayer.

We must pray. This is not a matter to be taken lightly or one in which we may feel free to trust our own judgment. We do not know our hearts. We may find ourselves wanting a gift that exalts our sense of self-importance, but that God does not have in mind for us. We may find ourselves resisting the gift he actually has in mind. The only way we will get by this hurdle is to lay the entire matter before the Lord in serious, soul-searching prayer and ask him, as he speaks through his Word, to show us the gift he actually has given us.

If this is something you are interested in, and according to men like Paul and Peter it should be, you can find the entire article here. May we as a church family discover and use these gifts our Father has given us to serve one another and give Him glory. Merry Christmas.

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Decisions, Decisions, Decisions

Buying just the right Christmas present is a hard, sometimes very stressful decision. It takes time and effort to find that perfect gift for that person who seems to have everything. Of course, you can always take the easy way out and give them a gift card, but then you miss out on all the "fun" of things like finding the right size and hoping it's in stock.

Still, all things considered, choosing the right gift to buy is the least of our problems and certainly one of the least significant decisions we will have to make in life. How about who to marry or what career path to take or what to do with our retirement years? When it comes to making these kinds of decisions, the real question is, how do I know that it is God's will? How do I know this is what God wants me to do? Do I look for some kind of sign or wait for a certain feeling?

Obviously, as Christians, we need to go to the bible for direction but scripture does not always directly address the decisions we need to make. What then? A good example of this can be seen in how Paul addressed the issue of eating certain meat.

1 Cor. 10:23-25 (ESV)
"All things are lawful," but not all things are helpful. "All things are lawful," but not all things build up. [24] Let no one seek his own good, but the good of his neighbor. [25] Eat whatever is sold in the meat market without raising any question on the ground of conscience.

Paul offers some universal principles here that can be applied to all kinds of decisions we face. As Christians we need to use a great deal of discernment even when it comes to little things like what music to listen to or what shows to watch. Almost 25 years ago, Sinclair Ferguson wrote an excellent book on all this called Discovering God's Will, I have a copy if you are interested. He also summarized some main points in a Banner of Truth Magazine essay. Here is part of what he says.

Of course we have our spiritual liberties. But when we find ourselves unable to enjoy the Christian life without our liberties, then we have become enslaved to them. There is, for example, presumably no built-in evil about owning a new car, or living in pleasant house, or enjoying various foods, spending time in various pursuits, or with certain kinds of people. But when we cannot be content without them; when we simply must have them - they are no longer our liberties, but our chains. The Christian should develop in Christ a sensitivity to those things to which he will most readily allow himself to be brought into bondage. "Will this enslave me?" will be a question never far from his thinking. "I will not be mastered by anything" is a good motto text for the man who has received a spirit of self-discipline [2 Tim 1:7].

Again, living out our faith and making these kinds of decisions requires biblical, Christ-centered, God glorifying thinking. As Paul wrote in Romans 12:2 "Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God"

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Here We Go Again

Well, here we go again... another movie to stir up the masses, as it were. A few years back it was The Da Vinci Code, then it was the Harry Potter series, now The Golden Compass is set to shake things up when it opens this week. It is a movie based on a series of books by Phil Pullman which are by all accounts quite set on attacking the Christian faith. For example, according to the Toronto Star,

Pullman has made controversial statements, telling The Washington Post in 2001 he was "trying to undermine the basis of Christian belief." In 2003, he said that compared to the Harry Potter series, his books had been "flying under the radar, saying things that are far more subversive than anything poor old Harry has said. My books are about killing God."

Now I realize that this is just another movie, and that most people will not go to see it. Still, we should be interested, if not informed about it if we are concerned about engaging the culture around us with the truth. As such, I would direct you to a very good article by Albert Mohler. I am personally very thankful for his ministry which continually addresses our culture in a very gracious and informed manner. Here is part of what Dr. Mohler has to say about this movie:

This is not just any fantasy trilogy or film project. Philip Pullman has an agenda -- an agenda about as subtle as an army tank. His agenda is nothing less than to expose what he believes is the tyranny of the Christian faith and the Christian church. His hatred of the biblical storyline is clear. He is an atheist whose most important literary project is intended to offer a moral narrative that will reverse the biblical account of the fall and provide a liberating mythology for a new secular age.

The great enemy of humanity in the three books, The Golden Compass, The Subtle Knife, and The Amber Spyglass (together known as His Dark Materials) is the Christian church, identified as the evil Magisterium. The Magisterium, representing church authority, is afraid of human freedom and seeks to repress human sexuality.

This movie will spark conversations around the water cooler, at the dinner table and in the classroom. It will raise questions about worldviews and beliefs. Therefore, as Christians, we should be concerned about movies like this and see them, in part, as an opportunity to share the gospel. After all, as Peter reminds us, we should "always be prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you" (1 Peter 3:15)

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