Let Us Use Them

"Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them." --Romans 12:6 If you have any classical music at the ready, go ahead and cue it up. (This reads better with it.) Ready? Now, imagine him. With only a candle to light the room, Mozart furiously scribbles with one hand while playing the piano with the other. His fingers can't keep up. Face buried in the music, he puts the finishing touches on a masterpiece. Although he's alone, he can hear every instrument lending its unique sound to the opus. Before a soul ever hears a note, he raises is head, closes his eyes and then...he's conducting.

Mozart left us his sheet music to follow, but if we play it out of key, it not only sounds wrong -- making dissonance out of harmony -- but it's not what the composer had intended. Friends, God gave us the instructions on how we should build our lives and how these bodies support that purpose. Are we being worthy craftsmen, fulfilling His intentions? He certainly didn't intend for us to worship ourselves in the mirror, but we also weren't designed to sit idle in front our TVs.

No, some of us are the hands -- the reachers and the helpers. Others are the feet -- the seekers and doers. You may be the ears, the good listener or the tongue, a fine speaker. But whether yours is the back that carries, or you have the shoulders that bear burdens, we are the body. And like the Bible says in Romans 12, "Let us use them."

--Jimmy Peña

Prayer Requests: Thank you everyone for the birthday wishes on Friday. You made my day. And guys, as we start the week, let's pray for each other. Let's go to the cross. Is someone you know sick and hurting? Maybe you have a big meeting this week. Whatever it is, let us know. If you'd rather not be specific, simply say "unspoken" and we promise to lift your name in prayer.