Thursday, June 11, 2026
(click here to listen to or read today’s scriptures)
Gifts for all of us
Jesus said to his disciples:
“I tell you, unless your righteousness surpasses that
of the scribes and Pharisees,
you will not enter into the Kingdom of heaven.
For many years Margaret has studied the Bible in a “Walk Through the Bible” program, in a weekly meeting of Bible Study Fellowship (her online group this year included members from Africa and Canada and the United States), and Precepts, which she has attended in Illinois and Austin.
The Austin group meets on Tuesdays just a few steps away from our apartment, in the same building that houses our Grace Covenant Church offices. This week the Gideons were also meeting for a meal, prayer, and Bible business. They meet once a month downstairs, while the Precepts folks meet upstairs every week.
My friend Mike led the group this week. “This will be a tough session,” he said. “We’re going to look at parts of the Bible about spiritual gifts, and I expect our opinions will be all over the place.” So then he prayed and we began to answer the Precepts questions Kay Arthur developed over the years.
The Precepts group is diverse in many ways. UT professors, data engineers, unemployed folks, Texas government employees, plenty of retirees … along with Margaret, who you all know as a smiling high-functioning introvert from Kentucky, who makes it a point on Sunday morning to look around for new people to meet and welcome. It’s the samerecepts. When she comes home on Tuesday night with stories and thoughts about the Bible, they always lean into thoughts about the folks sitting in the circle with her.
She hasn’t been feeling well, so she lent me her bookfull of questions to answer about the last four chapters of Romans, signed in as her, wore the nametag upside down to assure everyone that I was only related, got a cup of coffee and settled in. My fancy red Wonder Walker folded up, I was comfortable with these folks. Mike (whose wife passed away less than five months ago), kept the meeting going, inviting us to talk but not too long, so we could get through the questions.
Sometimes I rebelled at the take-it-for-granted Christianese we were all using. The questions probed deeply, forcing us to at least try to define words like evangelize, and gospel, and to think at least a little about how to share thoughts about Jesus with people loved by God but who have no idea what that means or how to live him back.
Adriana talked about her education as a teacher, how she was taught to identify her desire and skill at learn, more through her eyes or her ears or through movement and touch. And also how to intuit the learning channels of her students, which would certainly be all three, and probably less defined. Experience with people everywhere involves the same discernment. My enjoyment of a relationship, especially a new one, depends on if I can get those love languages and learning styles at least halfway right.
I remembered Chisholm’s sermon at Vineyard about the Holy Spirit belt, with a few holders for hammer, screwdriver, pliers, and saw … spaces for the eight gifts in Romans, the nine gifts in 1 Corinthians,,  and the guidance in 1 Peter. Hold your gifts lightly, he said. Know what’s in your toolbelt and be ready to reach in and do some work. Miracles, healing, giving, faith, prophecy … and there are more … Chisholm’s advice was to see what is needed (hard enough by itself), then reach down and pull out the tool God wants. We’re all in this together, and God’s hand caresses each of our little heads while he waits for us to notice.
Often the noticing comes after I pull out a tool and put it to use. Oh, God, you’re here! You’ve been here all along? Did you notice how I pulled out just the right tool, God?
And of course … He does. Because God’s determined to teach us every which way that as Paul says often, “The greatest of these gifts is love.” I would be clueless about what that means if God didn’t go first. And love little old “unloveable” me.
But he does go first, and as I open my protective shields longer and longer each day, I can thank him.
(Acts 11, Psalm 98, John 13, Matthew 5)
(posted at www.davesandel.net)
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