Knowing that God is omniscient, omnipotent and omnipresent, which means He knows all things, at all times in all places, I can rest in the knowledge that He is in control of my life and everything else that may come my way. I have confidence that God has my best interests in mind at all times.
I also believe that God equips each of us with differing gifts, talents and abilities that no one else possesses. We are entrusted with these gifts and we are expected to use them to better our life as well as the lives of those around us. Our gifts are unique to only ourselves. We don’t share the same abilities. We don’t have the same gifts. We are unique in our creation and unique in our gifting.
So what are our gifts? They are the things that come naturally to us without having to apply much effort to do them. We find them to be easy to do, but they still need to be honed and sharpened, like any skill, so that they can be used to their optimal level. A simple quote says “Practice makes perfect.” That is very true because any ability, gift or talent that is practiced over and over again becomes better and better. That is how we are to think about our gifts. We must recognize how blessed and fortunate we are to have our gifts and do our absolute best to use them to their fullest potential.
No matter what has gone wrong in your life in times past, know that you are special and unique. Your past does not define your future. Your gifts are there for a reason and they should be utilized to the fullest so that your life will become better and the lives of those around you will also benefit from what you’ve graciously been given.
Never discount your life, never think that you have reached your highest pinnacle and always dare to dream bigger, better and higher than you have ever dreamed before. Believe in yourself and allow the Lord to use your life so that its impact will never be forgotten or erased.
If you are like me, there are some things you may feel you do pretty well, and others that you would not admit to having done even at gunpoint! Please don’t expect anything I build with my hands to remain standing past sundown, or anything I attempt to repair to ever stay fixed after I leave the room. And if my cars relied solely on me to keep them going, I would walk most everywhere I go.
On the other hand, I can play guitar adequately, along with some other instruments. I also enjoy working with people and I seem to have made it a lifelong project to learn how to become a better listener. I never thought of myself as one who has any great talent, but like each of us, I have certain skills and abilities. Let me tell you a story that I once heard speaker Les Brown relate. It’s a story about a man who had real talent.
This particular man played piano in a bar. He was a good piano player. People came out just to hear him and his combo play. But one night, a patron wanted them to sing a particular song. The trio didn’t sing much and declined. But the customer was persistent. He told the bartender, “I’m tired of listening to the piano. I want that guy to sing!”
The bartender shouted across the room, “Hey buddy! If you want to get paid, sing the song. The patrons are asking you to sing!”
So he did. He sang a song. A jazz piano player who had never sang the song in public did so for the very first time. And nobody had ever heard “Sweet Lorraine” sung the way it was sung that night by Nat King Cole. He had talent he was sitting on. He may have lived the rest of his life playing in a jazz trio in no-name bars, but because he had to sing, he went on to become one of the best-known entertainers in America.
You, too, have skills and abilities. You may not feel as if your “talent” is particularly great, but it may be better than you think! And with persistence, most skills can be improved. Besides, you may as well have no ability at all if you sit on whatever talent you possess.
Some people ask, “What ability do I have that is useful?” But the better question is: “How will I use the ability that I have?”
I hope this message encourages and inspires your heart to see that you have the potential to do great things in life, but you must believe that you are meant to be great.