Faith is a gift, but it also calls us to a mission. One of the best ways to pass on faith is to walk in the good works God designed for us.

TODAY’S SCRIPTURE

For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you. For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith; if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach; if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead, do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully. 

—Romans 12:3-8 (NIV) 

Additional Scripture 

—2 Timothy 1:6-10 

—Psalm 139:13-16 

—Ephesians 2:4-10 

REFLECT ON THE WORD

A spark has two possible ends—to suddenly make itself known in a burst of light and then diminish completely, or to meet with something flammable and be ignited into something much greater than itself. 

As children of God and recipients of the Holy Spirit, we all have two similar paths to choose from. When the Holy Spirit places a spark on the inside of us in the form of a gifting paired with a kingdom purpose, we will either light up at the initial excitement of all the possibilities and then fizzle out as we fail to make contact with anything outside of ourselves, or we will be people who recognize that the purpose of our giftings and our passions is to light up the world around us, and we will touch our flame to anything that might catch fire. 

In 2 Timothy 1:6-10, Paul urges Timothy to “fan into flame the gift of God,” not being timid or ashamed of the message of Christ, but demonstrating a life of power, love and soundness of mind to the people around him. 

In Romans 12, Paul makes it sound so simple when he boils it down to this: “Do you have the gift of prophecy? Prophesy! Are you able to serve? Serve! Is your gifting the ability to teach or encourage or give? Teach! Encourage! Give!” 

Whatever we have, let’s pour it out without reservation on the world around us. As we do, we will find that our giftings never fizzle out, and our spark is never diminished, but rather that we are burning stronger and brighter than we ever could have on our own. 

PRAYER + CONTEMPLATION

1 - Reflect on the giftings that God has given you and how they align with the purpose that He has placed on your life. 

2 - Ask the Holy Spirit to highlight any of your giftings that you have been holding onto for yourself out of timidity or an inclination toward self-preservation. 

3 - Commit your giftings and your passions to the Lord. Offer yourself to Him again as a living sacrifice, ready to pour yourself out for the sake of the world around you.