I have been blessed to have been given talents I can use to serve God. I have really come out of my shell in the past year, singing in the worship band at the BCM, playing my bass guitar to worship Him, just to name a few. It should be something worth noting that we all have different talents and gifts which can and should be utilized to serve the Lord.

In the passages I used, Romans 12:3-8 and 1 Corinthians 12, Paul doesn't necessarily talk about our talents, such as athleticism, musical, and even artistic. Paul is talking about something that can be used alongside those talents and abilities, something many refer to as "spiritual gifts." More on that in a bit.

Notice also in 1 Corinthians 12 that Paul compares the Church body (notice that there is a difference when referring to Church, the body of Christ, and church, the building in which we gather to worship Christ) to the human body. He gives an example that the entire body is not an eye or a hand or a foot. It would be a little weird seeing an eyeball walking around. Paul uses this illustration to make a point, however. The point Paul is trying to make here is that we are all given unique gifts and talents so that we can serve God in our own, unique way.

What this means is that, as we have different members of our body, like the mouth to eat, ears to hear, nose to smell (although my sense of smell isn't exactly the best), feet to walk, and even hands to write or type, the gifts and talents God gives us to use to bring others to Him can all come together to form the body of Christ. We each have different talents. For example, while at the University of Florida, Tim Tebow used his platform as the face of the program at quarterback to share the Gospel with others. In his book, Shaken, he recounts that when his Gators faced off against the Oklahoma Sooners in the 2009 FedEx BCS National Championship, that he wore the verse John 3:16 on his eye black. During the game, millions searched that verse, being exposed to the Gospel.

The point I want to make in sharing this story of one of my childhood role models (the other main one being former Alabama and Seattle Seahawks running back Shaun Alexander, who I wore 37 when playing football because of) is that, no matter what gifts or talents you may have, you should always strive to use those talents and live so that people can see and hear the Gospel. It should be our goal to use those God-given abilities to further His kingdom.

Notice also in 1 Corinthians 12 that Paul refers to spiritual gifts, which I mentioned earlier. He goes through a list of these in verses 8-10. A resource I used with the youth, which comes with a spiritual gifts inventory, which I will post a link at the end for readers to go to and print off the article "Discover Your Spiritual Gifts!," as well as the spiritual gifts inventory to take for yourself to discover yours.

In the article, we find a good definition of what a spiritual gift is to work with. According to writer Gene Wilkes, a spiritual gift is an expression of the Holy Spirit in the lives of believers which empowers them to serve the body of Christ. He gives a list of the gifts, as well as a description of the gifts. The spiritual gifts Wilkes describes are as follows: leadership, administration, teaching, knowledge, wisdom, prophecy, discernment, exhortation, shepherding, faith, evangelism, apostleship, service/helps, mercy, giving, and hospitality. Each of these plays a vital role in the life of the Church.

As I challenged the youth, I also challenge all who read to take the spiritual gifts inventory, and when you determine the three you score the highest on, comment and tell me yours, and how you can use those gifts to serve God. In order to be an example to the youth, I filled one out on my own as well, and upon completing, I discovered that my three highest were hospitality, faith, and teaching. I see myself using these all the time, whether I'm helping people feel welcomed at the BCM or Engage or even at my home church, teaching the youth, or simply just putting faith in Christ in the midst of the storms life throws at us.

Everyone has gifts that can be used to glorify God and bring others to Him. It is my prayer that you seek to discover them using the spiritual gifts inventory in the following link: https://www.lifeway.com/en/articles/women-leadership-spiritual-gifts-growth-service. I also want to give a special shout out to Bro. Robbie Jenkins, who is now serving at a church in Cairo, Georgia, for giving me this idea when he used it while serving with the youth at First Baptist Jacksonville.