Gifts and Burdens
The words gift and burden don’t belong in the same sentence, at least they shouldn’t. But sometimes they do and here’s why: we can allow our gifts to use us instead of us using our gifts.
I’ll give you an example of what I mean. I didn’t need a spiritual gifts test to tell me I have the gift of mercy. I feel it down deep in my soul with every tear I cry for those I love, for those I have never even met but read about, heard about, think about. Ask anyone who knows me, I cry easily. But for me, it’s not just about tears. It’s about what I ‘do’ with those feelings. Action follows feeling. And that’s good. Most of the time.
I don’t just see shelter dogs in need of rescue. I give money (ask my husband about this one). I write books and donate them to adoption events. I share and ‘bump’ on facebook. And I cry for those I can’t save.
And I can’t really say there’s a negative to my love of rescue animals, well maybe I go overboard with donations (don’t tell Tim). But where my mercy comes into contact with people, that’s where I can get off track, veer out of my lane if you will.
What happens is this: I see people in pain, and I want to fix it. I see people in need, and I want to fix it. I’m a fixer. And to be fair, that’s what mercy does. But…I said I veer out of my lane because sometimes, sometimes it is not my place to fix your pain. It is not my call to fill your need.
If I jump in when God says stand still, I can cause major problems. For you. For me. I can create a dependency on me, that while it may feed my ego, causes you to never learn to help yourself or worse never to learn to lean on God.
There are times when my mercy should lead me to give a hug, make a call, say a prayer, not move your mountain. Other times I do need to be shoulder to shoulder, my shovel next to yours until we move that sucker or climb to the other side. How to know? Well, that’s a bigger discussion. But I will say I’m learning to be intentional with my responses because I KNOW who I am and my tendency to intervene and attempt to save the world. It’s genuine but can be misguided.
Obviously, there are other gifts that should be positives but can easily become negatives. Maybe you’re a gifted teacher. What an awesome skill! However, that platform can be extremely powerful. We have to be cautious to not allow our personal opinions and biases to be consumed as fact by our listeners. Teachers hold a powerful tool in their hands. We should use it well.
Perhaps you have the gift of service. I would so much rather be doing something than standing awkwardly on the sidelines. Put me to work!
Still, I have a tendency to be like the little hero of Holland. Do you know the story? He found a hole in the dike and stuck his finger in there, holding back the destructive waters for the entire town! It’s a great tale, however, the boy needed help! If you are doing so much that if you stepped away, the entire office or church would fall apart because you, and you alone, are holding back the flood…there might be a problem. You’re going to get tired. I’m going to get tired.
We can’t do it all. I know. I want to as well. But we can’t. We need each other. We need our team, our community, our tribe. If you don’t have one, get one! Because eventually, you, me, we can’t hold the world together alone. The dike will break. Then everyone suffers.
We could go on and on with particular gifts and how positive becomes negative. But here’s the bottom line: Use your gift, don’t allow your gift to use you. Don’t abuse your gift. Don’t allow your gift to abuse you.
God has so graciously given His children beautiful gifts to use, to give back to Him and to others. Whatever your gift may be, the purpose is to glorify God and edify those around us. Gifts are to grow us, not consume us.
Robin