Tent of Talent

I am going to jump out of sequence a bit and back up to Exodus. This is very unlike my orderly, firstborn personality, but this blog is supposed to be about reflecting not just being disciplined, so I should probably reflect on what is on my heart and mind. Also, I am listening to the Bible on CD as well as reading it, and I have been a little behind on my audio version, so I actually just listened to Exodus in the past couple of weeks and it reminded me of something I had intended to blog about earlier.

So there are these two guys at the end of Exodus, Bezalel and Oholiab. You probably don't recognize their names - but they basically oversaw the construction of the entire Tabernacle...the design for it, the construction, even the creation of the linens and decorative pieces. That's kind of a big deal. But the thing is, God called them to it. God says he filled them "with skill, with intelligence, with knowledge and with all craftsmanship" (Exodus 35:31) to execute the creation of God's dwelling place with the Israelites. Reading about Bez and Oho reminded me that God gives us talents and expects us to use them for His glory. These are not spiritual gifts. I think often, as Christians, we dwell on trying to figure out what our Spiritual gifts are, and if we are using them, or how we can be using them. This is not bad, but what about the practical? What about the skills, knowledge and talents God has given you? They may not seem spiritual or even very worthy, but can they be used? Can your skill as a plumber or an electrician or your general aptitude as a handyman or  your ability to cook or draw or entertain young children or knit or speak a second language be used for the glory of God? We are each endowed with a Spiritual Gift when we are in Christ, but are there other skills we have, bestowed on us by our glorious Creator, that we are not using?

I personally don't think I excel at many skills. I honestly consider myelf average in a lot of areas. My spiritual gifts are probably teaching and/or administration and I see how those gifts even carry over into my interests and into my job, but as far as talents and skills, I don't feel like my cup is overflowing. I have always been a mediocre athelete; I can't sing or play an instrument; I am decent at drama/acting but never developed my skill in it; I have tolerable cooking and cleaning skills; I can't sew; I'm not strong; I don't do manual labor such as hauling or lifting well (ask my sister...); I am helpless with handyman type things such as putting together furniture, and my five years of French amount to "Au Revior" in my mind. I have a strong aversion to all things mathematical; I don't even do my own taxes. My dad does them for me.

However, if there is one place I have ever felt above average, it's at school. And  if there is one skill that ever helped me excel in school (clearly, not my affinity for math), it has been writing. From a young age, God has given me the skill of knowing how to manipulate and use language for all sorts of purposes. Please don't let this blog be the sole indicator of that skill, as I try to write quickly from the heart without too much editing or agonzing over word choice and sentence structure. However, when it comes to writing, I know that my words have the power to manipulate, persuade, convict, inform and encourage. Clearly, not really a spiritual gift, just a skill given to me by the Lord. And over the years, I have been convicted time and time again to search and seek for ways to use this skill for God's glory. I guess the biggest conviction is to use the written word to encourage other people - I have honestly considered what it would look like to spend five minutes a day writing a note of encouragement to someone - anyone in my life who seems to need paryer or encouragment. I have also considered other things like writing or editing for church publications - any mundane task  that would allow my one simple skill to serve the church in a practical way. And, to be honest, I still fail at this. I write notes of encouragement sporadically at best, and have only made weak attempts to put my writing and editing skills to use within the church. But I am convicted once again by Bezalel and Oholiab, who together constructed God's dwelling place among men with their humble skills as architects, construction managers, weavers and metalworkers. And because of their willingness to serve the Lord in this practical way, "the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle" (Exodus 40:34) and the Israelites were able to live with God in their very midst. How might you and I bring God's glory into our midst with our pens, hammers, spoons, and calculators?