What's MY Role?

"Just as our bodies have many parts and each part has a special function, so it is with Christ’s body. We are many parts of one body, and we all belong to each other. In his grace, God has given us different gifts for doing certain things well. So if God has given you the ability to prophesy, speak out with as much faith as God has given you. If your gift is serving others, serve them well. If you are a teacher, teach well. If your gift is to encourage others, be encouraging. If it is giving, give generously. If God has given you leadership ability, take the responsibility seriously. And if you have a gift for showing kindness to others, do it gladly. ~ Romans 12:4-8 (New Living Translation)

Let me tell you about three people I know (names have been changed):

Mel: Wonderful church leader, but filled with so much pain, he's had trouble talking about it to anyone but his closest Christian brothers. His ROLE as I saw it was to remind me of my own human frailty, and to help me remember the apostle Paul's writings, "for when I am weak, then am I strong".

Mandy: Contrary, argumentative, and sometimes just downright uppity. She'd ask the tough questions in Bible Study and Sunday School, and often the teacher didn't have an answer that satisfied her. Her ROLE as I saw it was to keep us teachers from getting sloppy. We were teaching the inspired Word of God, and Sister Mandy ensured we studied and prepared thoroughly, so we could address any questions or issues.

John: Such quiet serenity. He could sit in the pulpit and just WAVE his hand, and you could feel the power of his belief. His ROLE was to remind me that even the smallest of gestures offered in praise to God through faith, have tremendous value.

You may have heard this story before: A gentleman was walking through the countryside during the Middle Ages. He came upon two stonecutters, working in the shadow of a partially-completed cathedral. He asked the first "What are you doing?" The man's response? "I'm cutting this stone to be this high by this wide by this deep". Then he asked the second man, "What are you doing?", and this man's response was entirely different: "I'm building a cathedral". Only the second stonecutter seemed to be aware of where his work fit into the larger "picture" of the cathedral.

Take a look at the two cups shown in this blog. One is cute and durable, one beautiful and fragile. If I ask you "Which is better?", a precise answer is impossible, because each of these cups is especially suited to fulfill a specific role.

So today I'd like you to close your eyes and ask yourself, "WHAT'S MY ROLE" in the body of believers? What gift has God given me that is unique and particular just to me? And how can I use that unique and special gift, to help ensure God gets some glory out of my life?

Lord, I thank you for allowing me to recognize that I play a part in the successful accomplishment of your kingdom on earth. Please help me recognize my ROLE within the body of believers. Help me to understand how my ROLE, no matter how small, MAKES A DIFFERENCE, and without me, the body won't work quite so well. And Lord, give me the courage to walk into that role boldly and continuously, so you'll get the glory in all I do.

Amen!

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© 2009 Scotty Ward