Read it: Romans 12:4-8, Judges 16:1-21
Live it:
Spiritual gifts are an essential part of who God made us to be. The five verses from Romans 12 list six spiritual gifts: prophecy, serving others, encouraging others, giving, leadership, and kindness. This list is only a small sample of the spiritual gifts God gives His followers. The purpose of the gifts is to make us a blessing to our family, our church, and our community.
Samson was gifted for the same reason. God set him apart to be a blessing to the nation of Israel and to lead the nation in strength, wisdom, and godliness. But he failed. His lust for pleasure became the slippery slope that led to the loss of his ability to use his spiritual gifts. The story of Samson stands as a warning to us to steer clear of those things that may distract us from following God with all our might and losing the ability to exercise our spiritual gifts.
The Bible admonishes us to “guard our hearts.” Don’t do as Samson did and lose the opportunity to be used by God in the exercise of the powerful giftings he has placed in you.
Do it:
Think about the spiritual gifts that you are grateful for. Review the list of gifts that you wrote down on Day 2. Now, visualize the opportunities to use those gifts being taken away from you. How would you process that? What support would you need? What would you need to do about it?
Pastor Rod