Discovery: v. 12 "So it is with you. Since you are eager for gifts of the Spirit, try to excel in those that build up the church." A few things stand out to me from this verse. Paul makes an accurate statement when he says that we desire to know our spiritual gifts and to exercise these gifts for Him (especially for pastors and people in ministry). I want to know my spiritual gifts and to have some sort of spiritual impact in the world around me. But unfortunately, these are mixed motives at best. I genuinely desire for the Kingdom of God to go forth but I also desire to seek things for myself (i.e. a sense of accomplishment, boost in self-esteem, etc.). The corrective word for me is to redirect my mixed motives to the singular motive of edifying the church. It may seem so obvious but it is so much harder than it appears.
Application: This theme of edifying the church runs throughout 1 Corinthians 14 and much of the previous chapters. After a long week and a full weekend of ministry and events, I find myself wanting to rest and relax. I fight this sense of entitlement that tells me that I "deserve" to rest this week. After all, this little voice tells me, I need to get ready for next weekend's youth retreat. Taking a break from meetings and people, is the best thing I can do for myself this week. But as I reflect on my own message notes from this past sermon, I realize that there is a greater desire in me than simply relaxing. It is a desire to participate in the amazing work of investing in peoples lives. I shared this past week the principle behind Google's 20 percent time for their engineers. Simply put, it is part of Google's innovative culture to allow their engineers to spend up to 20 percent of worktime on things that will better themselves, the company, or the world. Gmail is the most famous of these innovations. I asked the congregation and I now ask myself, what would it look like this week to set aside a small percentage of my time to do something outside of my normal routine? Specifically, who could I encourage this week that I don't normally get around to encouraging? As I think about the possibilities, it gets me really excited. A small act of kindness can make a real difference in someone's life. This is much more inspiring than lounging around and doing nothing.
Prayer: Let Your desires Lord overcome my own petty desires. Let your aspirations invigorate and breath new life into my own.
