Silas
Beloved of All
Thank you for sharing your heart so honestly about waiting and about fear. It is good to bring both of these before the Lord.
Concerning spiritual gifts, Scripture teaches that there are many different gifts but the same Spirit, many different ways of serving but the same Lord, many different workings but the same God. The Spirit gives to each person as He wills, and He places each member in the body as it pleases Him. No one has all the gifts. Are all apostles, are all prophets, are all teachers, do all work miracles, do all have gifts of healing, do all speak with tongues. The answer is no. This means you do not need to have every gift, and you should not measure yourself by what someone else has been given. What God has given you is what you need for the place He has called you to fill, and whatever gift you have is important for the whole body, even if it is not prominent in the eyes of others.
Because the Spirit is sovereign in how He distributes gifts, you cannot demand a particular gift, but you are encouraged to earnestly desire the best gifts. It is right to ask the Lord to show you and to stir up what He has already placed within you. Sometimes we let a gift grow cold like embers that need fresh fuel. Ask Him, seek Him, be faithful to use what is already in your hand, and trust Him to make clear in His time how He wants to use you, whether in a career or in any other area of life.
There is also something greater than any gift. Love is the more excellent way. Gifts are for this present time, they are needed and valuable now, but they will one day pass away when they are no longer needed. Love never fails, it endures. So as you seek to know your gifts, seek even more to grow in love, for love is superior to all the gifts and gives them their true meaning.
Concerning fear, God has not given to His children a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind. Fear of people is a trap that holds many back from stepping out in what God has given them. The fear that God does desire in us is not a phobia, but a reverent awe as we consider who He is, His greatness and holiness and love. That kind of fear is the beginning of wisdom, the starting place and the sum of knowledge. To fear the Lord is to love what He loves and to hate evil and to want to please Him above all. When that reverence fills your heart, other fears lose their control.
So do not hold back because you are afraid of failing or of what others may think. Put your trust in the Lord and you will be safe. Walk in reverence for Him each day, stay close to Him in His Word and in prayer, and be willing to take the next faithful step with the measure He has given you now.
I am praying for you, that the Lord will give you wisdom and clarity about the gifts He has placed in you and how He wants you to use them to serve others and to honor Him. I am praying that He will replace a spirit of fear with His power, His love, and a sound mind, and that you will know His peace as you wait on Him and walk with Him. May He guide you into the work He has prepared for you and cause His love to be the mark of all you do, in Jesus name.
Concerning spiritual gifts, Scripture teaches that there are many different gifts but the same Spirit, many different ways of serving but the same Lord, many different workings but the same God. The Spirit gives to each person as He wills, and He places each member in the body as it pleases Him. No one has all the gifts. Are all apostles, are all prophets, are all teachers, do all work miracles, do all have gifts of healing, do all speak with tongues. The answer is no. This means you do not need to have every gift, and you should not measure yourself by what someone else has been given. What God has given you is what you need for the place He has called you to fill, and whatever gift you have is important for the whole body, even if it is not prominent in the eyes of others.
Because the Spirit is sovereign in how He distributes gifts, you cannot demand a particular gift, but you are encouraged to earnestly desire the best gifts. It is right to ask the Lord to show you and to stir up what He has already placed within you. Sometimes we let a gift grow cold like embers that need fresh fuel. Ask Him, seek Him, be faithful to use what is already in your hand, and trust Him to make clear in His time how He wants to use you, whether in a career or in any other area of life.
There is also something greater than any gift. Love is the more excellent way. Gifts are for this present time, they are needed and valuable now, but they will one day pass away when they are no longer needed. Love never fails, it endures. So as you seek to know your gifts, seek even more to grow in love, for love is superior to all the gifts and gives them their true meaning.
Concerning fear, God has not given to His children a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind. Fear of people is a trap that holds many back from stepping out in what God has given them. The fear that God does desire in us is not a phobia, but a reverent awe as we consider who He is, His greatness and holiness and love. That kind of fear is the beginning of wisdom, the starting place and the sum of knowledge. To fear the Lord is to love what He loves and to hate evil and to want to please Him above all. When that reverence fills your heart, other fears lose their control.
So do not hold back because you are afraid of failing or of what others may think. Put your trust in the Lord and you will be safe. Walk in reverence for Him each day, stay close to Him in His Word and in prayer, and be willing to take the next faithful step with the measure He has given you now.
I am praying for you, that the Lord will give you wisdom and clarity about the gifts He has placed in you and how He wants you to use them to serve others and to honor Him. I am praying that He will replace a spirit of fear with His power, His love, and a sound mind, and that you will know His peace as you wait on Him and walk with Him. May He guide you into the work He has prepared for you and cause His love to be the mark of all you do, in Jesus name.
