Who I Am, What Are My Talents, and How Does God Call Me
Fourteen years ago, at the age of four, I stood on the stage of the old
Fellowship Hall at the Annual Pig Pickin’ and Talent Show, dressed as a dog,
with Ashley by my side. Ashley, who
has always been a bit of a ham, delivered the chorus, “How much is that doggie
in the window?” and I chimed in with a not so rousing, “Ruff, Ruff!”
That was it; I had made my debut!
Now as an 18 year old preparing for college, I look back and realize how
that experience, which seemed minute and insignificant at the time, led to a
multitude of opportunities to share my talents in many very public ways and
began my quest to understand who I am and how I am being called by God to
be
a Christian example for others, and lead a faithful lifestyle.
As my high school career comes to an end many questions arise – where
will I go, what will I do and ultimately who am I?
If one were to ask a teacher or classmate who I am they may say--a
scholar or student. A coach would
probably reply, “She’s an athlete,” and a church member might respond with,
“She’s a singer.” But really these
are all just the things I do. They
are not WHO I AM. What actually
defines my identity is not WHAT I do, but HOW and WHY I do the things I do.
Like someone once said, “the destination is not as important as the
journey you take to get there.”
How would you respond if asked the question, “Who are you?”
Would you base your answer on your career decisions?
Would you say you are a banker, teacher, lawyer, doctor, or carpenter?
Would you identify yourself by your family as—mother, father, or child?
In a society where climbing the ladder, whether it is corporate or
social, seems to be the motivation behind all action, what God calls us to do is
climb to the next level on the Christian ladder, to further develop our
Christian identities, and to develop the talents that he has given us in order
to best serve him.
In Matthew 25 Jesus tells the Parable of the Talents in which a rich man was
going on a journey and, entrusting his property to his servants, gave one
servant five talents, another two talents, and another one talent.
When the man returned he found that two of the servants had doubled their
accounts while the servant who had received one talent had buried it in the
ground, gaining nothing. The man,
angered at the servant, took his talents and threw the servant in the street.
In Biblical times, the term talents referred to a form of money, but
similarly, God calls each of us today to use our talents, our gifts, and our
skills toward a specific purpose.
Do not bury them away or use them for mere self-gratification.
We have each been given great abilities and according to Luke
So, Who am I? Who are you?
Ultimately, we are Christians and God is calling each of us to use the
gifts he has given us to help grow his kingdom while continuing to develop our
own Christian identities and demonstrate Christian principles in our actions.
Are the things you do and your approach to life encouraged by Christian
motives? Do they demonstrate your
faith? Whatever we
choose to do, our calling is to remain true to our Christian identity with
altruistic motives.
If you have not yet figured out who you are or what your Christian gifts are
then listen to Paul’s words to the Corinthians in chapter 12.
“Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.”
Paul recognizes that we are all God’s children, but we are not all given
the same gifts. But he does go on in
chapter 13 to identify the one greatest gift that we have all received from God
and can all apply to our lives. "1If
I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am
only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. 2If
I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and
if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.
3If I give all I possess to the poor and
surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing."
We belong to Christ and should live in a Christ-like way.
Whatever you DO, do it in love.
The ability to love is the one gift that God has bestowed on each of us
and has exemplified best through the gift of his Son.
Put your gifts to work towards what God is calling you to be because like Leo
Buscaglia, New York Times Best-Selling author of
Personhood:
The Art of Being Fully Human
and The Fall of Freddy the Leaf,
said “Your talent is God’s gift to you.
What you do with it is your gift back to God.”
As I move through life, WHAT I do will change. Eventually, I will no
longer be a student; I’ll have a career.
I’ll no longer play sports; I’ll just watch from the sidelines.
But WHO I AM will remain constant.
I’ll be a child of God, called to share my gifts because I am motivated
by LOVE.
Written by Emily Bradham and delivered on Youth Sunday, April 20, 2008