Use Your Gifts

Anyone else feel like a fool for trying so hard sometimes?

I pour so many hours into working on music. I know music is something I’m created to do. Even so, the struggle is real to know if all the effort I pour in will be worth it.

Does it matter? Will people care if I make another record? Will anyone show up at my concerts, no matter how much I’ve practiced and prepared? These questions are at the heart of my insecurities.

During my quiet time this morning, these words jumped off the page: “Go after a life of love as if your life depended on it — because it does. Give yourselves to the gifts God gives you.” 1 Cor 14:1 (MSG)

And it was as if (again!) God was speaking love and affirmation right into the holes of my fears and insecurities, filling them up with His love. Filling them with His giant: ‘I SEE YOU. YOU MATTER. AND I LOVE YOU!’ 

This helped me take courage to continue to steward the gifts I’ve been given because I believe this is what obedience, trust and faith looks like.

I know I’m a small part of a much bigger story being written, because we all are. I don’t have to know the next chapter. I just need to be a part of the sentence being written right now as best as I know how, as long as it’s called today. 

If you are struggling with calling and using your gifts, take heart and be encouraged. It’s okay to love the gifts you’ve been given and enjoy them thoroughly. That’s not selfish or indulgent.

AND it’s okay to be intimidated and overwhelmed by them too. That doesn’t mean there’s something wrong with you.

You, and all the things that make you special, matter greatly and are an essential and beautiful part of the story we are all invited to live into together.

So, “Go after a life of love as if your life depended on it — because it does. Give yourselves to the gifts God gives you. Throw yourselves into the work, confident that nothing you do for Him is a waste of time or effort.”