The Importance of Spiritual Gifts!

The question of the week is: “What did you learn this week in your Foundations of Church Ministry class that has changed your view of the church you are serving at? How has it impacted your view of your personal involvement in church ministry?

There are always plenty of new things that I learned in class. For Foundations of Church Ministry I came to understand what the bible says about Elders and Deacons, the importance of social justice and church discipline. However what I found most interesting was the discussion of spiritual gifts. Spiritual gifts have always fascinated. I knew about the lists of gifts in 1 Corinthians and in Romans, but I did not fully understand the importance of using ones spiritual gifts to the fullest. They must be used regularly and for the benefit of the Body of Christ. One could misuse a gift? Who knew! Therefore, coming across passages like 2 Timothy 1:6-7 and 1 Peter 4:10-11 aided me to understanding the importance of spiritual gifts.  Learning and studying about spiritual gifts really helped to open my eyes to see the importance of everyone’s talents and abilities at Warmland Centre (my local church). I’ve come to really appreciate all the work that others do, the jobs and duties that I would not be well suited for however they take on the responsibility with a willing heart.  I am so thankful that the leadership at Warmland has stepped up to God’s calling about using the gifts He has given each and everyone one of us. Seeing all the wonderful willing people at my church has really encouraged me to come to understand the gifts that I blessed with and to developing them so that I may be used by God in His almighty plans and so that I may be a blessing to the congregation of Warmland Centre by using the talents, abilities, and gifts that God has given me through His Holy Spirit.

Retreats!

It has been two weeks which means that I get to write another lovely post on things that have been going here on the west coast. This week’s question is: "What have you seen God doing during retreats and being involved in retreats, what have they taught you about camp ministry?"

God has shown himself during the retreats here at camp. Sometimes it isn’t necessarily a huge alter call, I usually see His work in the little things. The positive attitudes of the staff even when they need to be flexible, the tough questions coming from the mouths of campers, and smiles and time investments from people around camp who aren’t even scheduled to work that weekend. As for what I have learned, there have been numerous lessons that God has been teaching me. What I learned most recently during the Jr. High Retreat, is that every minute of your day counts. Therefore, one must be ready at any given time to be used by God to minister to his children.  Since the campers were only here for a weekend it is so important to spend time with them and make it worthwhile. Show them God’s love, for this might be the only place where they receive it. That is one thing that we can never do too much. To show His love.